tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14412939993609344402018-12-04T21:05:09.147-08:00no fluke fishingCaptain Dave Montihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16831022398407972345noreply@blogger.comBlogger274125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1441293999360934440.post-41572311295040902182017-10-09T06:34:00.000-07:002017-10-09T06:34:25.073-07:00DEM stocking local waters with trout<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-e3dHIMAgh1U/Wdt5dnHhY-I/AAAAAAAACLY/J8tonYcWn7o7bs0Mh1xgryE0MAXYhIEAACLcBGAs/s1600/Matt-Weckbacher-69-striper-of-the-year%2B-%2BPhoto%2BB.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><i><img border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="600" height="213" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-e3dHIMAgh1U/Wdt5dnHhY-I/AAAAAAAACLY/J8tonYcWn7o7bs0Mh1xgryE0MAXYhIEAACLcBGAs/s320/Matt-Weckbacher-69-striper-of-the-year%2B-%2BPhoto%2BB.jpg" width="320" /></i></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><i>Matt Weckbacher holds up the replica mount of his 69-pound striped bass that took first place in Striperfest, a season-long striped bass tournament sponsored by On-the-Water magazine.</i></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><o:p></o:p><b>DEM stocking local waters with trout</b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="Default" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%;">The Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management (DEM) is stocking ponds across Rhode Island with 10,000 trout in advance of Columbus Day weekend. A select number of waterways will be stocked given current drought conditions and as conditions improve, additional stocking will take place. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="Default" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="Default" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%;">As part of a new initiative aimed at making larger, trophy-sized, hatchery-raised brown trout available to anglers, 400 brood stock brown trout with an average weight of 4 to 6 pounds will be stocked at Carbuncle Pond in Coventry beginning this fall.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="Default" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="Default" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%;">The following waters will be stocked: Carbuncle Pond, Coventry; Olney Pond, Lincoln; Silver Spring Pond, North Kingstown; Barber Pond, South Kingstown; Round Top Ponds, Burrillville; Meadowbrook Pond, Cronan Landing, Lower Shannock Fishing Area, and Beaver River (Rt. 138), Richmond; Ponagansett Fishing Area, Foster; Wallum Lake, Burrillville; Wood River, Dow Field, Mechanic Street, Barberville, Wyoming Pond, and the Pawcatuck River, Hopkinton; and Potter Hill Landing, Westerly. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="Default" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="Default" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%;">A current fishing license and a Trout Conservation Stamp are required to keep or possess a trout or to fish in a catch-and-release or fly-fishing only area. A trout stamp is not required for persons possessing trout taken from a lake or pond that shares a border with Rhode Island. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="Default" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="Default" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%;">For stocking information and freshwater fishing regulations visit <a href="http://www.dem.ri.gov/">www.dem.ri.gov</a>.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="Default" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="Default" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%;">A</span>SMFC garners angler input on Atlantic menhaden <o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="Default" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) hosted an Atlantic menhaden public hearing at the URI Bay Campus Wednesday night.&nbsp; About fourty anglers, environmentalist and DEM fish mangers attended.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">One of the key issues discussed was establishing Ecological Reference Points (ERP) for the species in Amendment 3 to modify the Atlantic menhaden Fishery Management Plan.&nbsp; Overwhelming with a 23 to 2 vote those in attendance supported an option that suggested a 75% target for biomass of Atlantic Menhaden to be left in the water as forage fish and ecological purposes.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Atlantic menhaden serve as a food source for striped bass, bluefish, whales, osprey and other species.&nbsp; They also serve an ecological purpose.&nbsp; Atlantic menhaden are filter feeders helping to reduce nutrient levels in the Bay and Ocean.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">The second key issue discussed was the reallocation of quota to coastal states.&nbsp; Virginia’s quota has historically hovered around 85% (with one fish processor Omega Protein landing most of that), New Jersey has been at about 11% and the remaining quota split among all other east coast states (Rhode Island’s quota is 0.02%). <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Once again overwhelming (23 to 1) those in attendance supported allocating a minimum of 3% to Rhode Island and other states that have small quotas at this time.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">The rational put forward was that historically states other than Virginia and New Jersey also had active fisheries but they closed due to a lock of fish.&nbsp; Now that the species is doing well and more fish are in northern waters quota should be reallocated to these states.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Amendment 3 will now go before the ASMFC Atlantic menhaden advisory panel for discussion and then the Atlantic menhaden board for decision and a vote in November.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">For information about Atlantic menhaden Amendment 3 visit <a href="http://www.asmfc.org/">www.asmfc.org</a>.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="Default" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><span style="color: windowtext; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Central Falls and DEM host family fishing day at Lincoln Woods<o:p></o:p></span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">DEM in partnership with the City of Central Falls and Progreso Latino, will host a family fishing event at Lincoln Woods State Park on Saturday, October 7, 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.&nbsp; The event is part of DEM’s ongoing efforts to promote outdoor recreation and environmental education in communities across the state.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">As part of the festivities, <span style="color: #202020;">instructors from DEM’s Aquatic Resource Education (ARE) program</span> will teach participants how to catch and clean trout. DEM teamed up with the City and Progreso Latino this summer to host a saltwater fishing excursion for residents of the Central Falls community; as part of this earlier event, some 50 people enjoyed a day on Narragansett Bay aboard the Francis Fleet Charter from Galilee, learning about the diversity and abundance of marine life in the Bay.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Where’s the bite<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Tautog</b>fishing started to explode this week with fish being caught in the Bay and along the coastal shore.&nbsp; Angler Richard Reich said, “We caught tautog to our limit off the center wall of the Harbor of Refuge earlier this week but went back the next day and caught one.” “Customers are catching fish but the short to keeper ratio is not very good. One customer fishing in the Ohio Ledge and Rumstick Point areas caught 30 shorts and two keepers and another angler at the Wharf Tavern caught 15 shorts to 1 keeper.” said John Littlefield of Archie’s Bait &amp; Tackle, Riverside. Lorraine Dante of Lucky Bait &amp; Tackle, Warren said, “Tautog fishing was good in the Bay this weekend with customers landing keepers at Stone Bridge, the Mt. Hope Bridge Lighthouse, even at Colt State Park.&nbsp; Green crabs worked well, Asian crabs are just starting to become available after the tropical storms and high seas that we had.”&nbsp; I fished off Beavertail this weekend and did pretty good catching eight shorts and two keepers.&nbsp; Ken Ferrara of Ray’s Bait &amp; Tackle, Warwick said, “Tautog fishing is just starting to pick up we had customers catching keepers at Hope Island, the Codding Cove Jetty and the humps off Beavertail.”<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Striped bass,bluefish and false albacore. </b>Mike Wade of Watch Hill Outfitters, Westerly, said, “It’s like National Geographic out here. We have whales feeding on mature Atlantic menhaden with striped bass, bluefish and large false albacore right behind them close to the beaches. On an outgoing tide the place to be is at the mouth of the Breachways and at high tide they are around Watch Hill Light.”&nbsp; Bluefish were surfacing in the Bay briefly and then going back down quickly once the bait moved.&nbsp; No prolonged surface action in the upper and middle Bay.&nbsp; Ken Ferrara of Ray’s Bait said, “Striped bass are being caught out in front off Beavertail and Newport with bluefish surfacing in the Bay.”&nbsp; John Littlefield of Archie’s Bait said, “Small striped bass are being caught at Rumstick Point, off Barrington Beach and in the Warren River.&nbsp; Only one report of a 29” keeper bass being caught a Sabin Point by a customer that was bottom fishing for other species.”<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>The scup </b>bite has been very good in the Bay.&nbsp; John Littlefield said, “Customers are catching very large scup in the bay once again and some are limiting out.&nbsp; Angler had said the fish were getting smaller by this week they have been large.&nbsp; They are catching scup at Colt State Park and Sabin Point.”<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Cod fishing.</b> Capt. Frank Blount of the Frances Fleet said, “We found <span style="background: white;">a pick of nice green cod to about 15 pounds Saturday. Hi hook boxed four good cod. Fishers also had some big ocean perch, huge sea flounder to four plus pounds, quite a few good size scup and a bluefish. Monday's run way offshore did produce a handful of nice green cod fish to twenty pounds but there was not enough of them and not much else to go with them.”</span> <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="background: white;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Fly fishing. </b>Noted local fishing guide and fly fisherman Ed Lombardo said, “The Narrow River<span style="background: white;"> has been fishing very good on both the outing and incoming tides. Lots of shad, we believe American shad (18” to 20”). Both the Hickory Shad and American Shad have been very prolific for the past 8 to 10 weeks. Two of the best flies I like using for the shad are tied on a size #1 hook and a simple black over white deer tail streamer with a body of Bill’s body braid. The other fly that always works well is a hot pink streamer tied with hot pink craft fur for a wing with body braid as well. We are getting only a few bass at this time hopefully this October will see more bass.”<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="background: white;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><i><br /></i></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><i><br /></i></div>Captain Dave Montihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16831022398407972345noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1441293999360934440.post-54104072807878901022017-10-09T06:26:00.001-07:002017-10-09T06:26:32.794-07:00 Capt. Donilon keeps innovating<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-T1d9g9Izy6c/Wdt3dlLidqI/AAAAAAAACLA/9KZNem3_agE2yHH4Qcfsds2xR_BlJJgoACLcBGAs/s1600/Captain%2BDonilon%2B-%2BPhoto%2BC.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="471" data-original-width="631" height="238" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-T1d9g9Izy6c/Wdt3dlLidqI/AAAAAAAACLA/9KZNem3_agE2yHH4Qcfsds2xR_BlJJgoACLcBGAs/s320/Captain%2BDonilon%2B-%2BPhoto%2BC.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><i>&nbsp;Capt. Charlie Donilon of Snappa Charters in front of one of his shark diving cages.</i><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><o:p></o:p></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-f9GGKKM-mlw/Wdt3nmlsxiI/AAAAAAAACLE/Qi_wtZIlqhgM3Ut2Ok2WxzWuq7h4ddf-gCLcBGAs/s1600/Mates%2Bat%2Btop%2Bof%2Bgame%2B-%2BPhoto%2BC%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1154" data-original-width="1600" height="230" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-f9GGKKM-mlw/Wdt3nmlsxiI/AAAAAAAACLE/Qi_wtZIlqhgM3Ut2Ok2WxzWuq7h4ddf-gCLcBGAs/s320/Mates%2Bat%2Btop%2Bof%2Bgame%2B-%2BPhoto%2BC%25282%2529.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><i>&nbsp;Mates Katie Viducic, Claire Hodson and Lauren Benoit of Snappa Charters.</i><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><o:p></o:p></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Hqp3TC0ZGn4/Wdt3rlb7jZI/AAAAAAAACLI/eU095WCN_eYOIZ4QAFvl1qPwLex9qSYAQCLcBGAs/s1600/Mate%2BLauren%2BBenoit%2B-%2BPhoto%2BH%2Boption.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1214" data-original-width="1600" height="242" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Hqp3TC0ZGn4/Wdt3rlb7jZI/AAAAAAAACLI/eU095WCN_eYOIZ4QAFvl1qPwLex9qSYAQCLcBGAs/s320/Mate%2BLauren%2BBenoit%2B-%2BPhoto%2BH%2Boption.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><i>Mate Laruen Benoit prepares the vessel and gear for a day of fishing on Snappa Charters.<o:p></o:p></i></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><b>Capt. Donilon keeps innovating<o:p></o:p></b></div><br /><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Early on a Saturday morning Capt. Charlie Donilon of <i>Snappa Charters</i>and mate Lauren Benoit picked up nine passengers in Newport. It was a foggy morning with big rollers from an ocean storm pushing the boat forward through the East Passage in front of Castle Hill Light and into Newport Harbor. I was along for the ride to meet Lauren, her fellow mates and experience another Capt. Charlie Donilon first. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Capt. Donilon is an industry innovator.&nbsp; He was the first charter captain in the area to have a shark diving cage in the 70’s, one of the first to start tagging rather than taking sharks, one of the few with an inspected vessel for eighteen rather than six passengers, the first to run a mate school and now the first to have a crew of oceanographers, environmental and fisheries graduates that happen to be all female.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Female mates in the charter industry are an anomaly. I was on board to meet and interview mates Laruen Benoit, Katie Viducic and Claire Hodson. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">I met Katie three years ago at Capt. Donilon’ s mate school.&nbsp; She was an instructor and Capt. Donilon’ s first female mate.&nbsp; She helped to attract Lauren and Claire to serve as they are or were all University of Rhode Island graduate students.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">We pulled out of Newport Harbor as Charlie explained the sites to his customers.&nbsp; “The granite walls of Ft. Adams are three to four feet thick to repel cannon fire.” “That’s Ida Lewis Yacht Club, she saved 18 people as a light house keeper. Many of them were a bit tipsy when returning to their vessels from town”&nbsp; “Did you know a million pounds of TNT was stored on Rose Island during the war.”<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Laruen, a West Greenwich resident, has a master’s degree in Oceanography and works doing research for NOAA. I asked why she wanted to be a mate. “I have a broad skill set but never knew how to fish. So learning to fish was important and above all I wanted to learn more about sharks.&nbsp; I wanted to catch, tag and release sharks and Charlie Donilon is a pioneer and expert in this area. Sharks were my specialty in graduate school.” said Lauren.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Customer John Cinti who organized the charter was getting married last weekend at the Inn at Castle Hill. He asked about job demands.&nbsp; Lauren said, “I work, go home, eat and sleep and do the same thing the next day.&nbsp; It’s a demanding job so I try to stay in shape and workout at the gym.” <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Cinti said, “I like the idea of female mates, they are easy to talk to and Lauren’s fisheries expertise helped inform me and my friends about the fishery here in Rhode Island.” <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Mate Claire Hodson of West Harford greeted us at the dock as we returned from Newport.&nbsp; She was taking the next charter as the Charter Vessel Snappa often does two trips a day.&nbsp; Capt. Donilon said, “I need to do 120 trips a year just to break even with the fuel, bait, insurance and boat payment costs.” So he expanded his business to do ash burials at sea, shark cage diving, photography, harbor, lighthouse and windmill tours.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Hodson said, “I wanted to be a mate on a charter boat to experience people interacting with the environment and be part of that … I also like going fishing and not knowing what you are going to catch.”<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Capt. Donilon’ s new innovation… a crew of female master degreed mates sure seems to be working.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"> </div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><i>Note: Capt. Donilon is an advocate and big supporter of sustainable fisheries and all the good the Magnuson-Stevens Act has done to rebuild fisheries. &nbsp;“One might think that I’m in the wrong business.&nbsp; I hate to kill fish.” said Capt. Donilon. “But some customers want to take the fish to eat and I totally understand this.&nbsp; Last year we had about 300 shark contacts and we tagged about 143 of them. I say “contact” because we did not kill one shark and this included nine mako sharks.”&nbsp;&nbsp;<o:p></o:p></i></div>Captain Dave Montihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16831022398407972345noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1441293999360934440.post-689179880092615972017-10-09T06:10:00.000-07:002017-10-09T06:10:17.874-07:00Fishing after storms can be tricky<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-HATCH74CJF4/Wdt0GeABd0I/AAAAAAAACK0/C4mU_bi4fxkCbCLKVfdKHthRrZoiYz8aACLcBGAs/s1600/Freshwater%2Bbite%2B-%2BPhoto%2BA.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1553" data-original-width="1579" height="314" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-HATCH74CJF4/Wdt0GeABd0I/AAAAAAAACK0/C4mU_bi4fxkCbCLKVfdKHthRrZoiYz8aACLcBGAs/s320/Freshwater%2Bbite%2B-%2BPhoto%2BA.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><i>Noah Brunelli of Wakefield (13 years old) with the 4.9 pound largemouth bass he caught on the Saugatucket River with worms he dug from the woods next to his home.</i><span style="background: white;"><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><i><br /></i></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Fishing after storms can be tricky <o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Many of us may have a touch of cabin fever after being waylaid by the remains of Jose.&nbsp; Freshwater fishing is a good bet after a storm as the water is not as turbid and conditions are usually more tolerable with no high ocean surf.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">As the weather clears here are some ‘fishing after storms’ thoughts and tips.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Be safe. Winds and rain create fast moving water on river banks and the coastal shoreline.&nbsp; Stay away from this water as you can get washed in particularly from high ocean surf.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">A storm like the one we had this week can change fishing a lot.&nbsp; Some species like summer flounder (fluke) may leave the area totally.&nbsp; Yet others species just won’t bite.&nbsp; They may not bite because the water is dirty with sand that irritates the gills of fish so they stop moving around and feeding or they simply cannot see your bait in murky, cloudy water.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Storms can also create fishing opportunities with reefs, clam and mussel beds that get torn up with broken shells providing a feeding ground for many of the fish we target.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Additionally, a good storm this time of year often provides a cleansing and transition time for anglers suggesting it is time to target fall species like tautog, migrating striped bass, surface feeding bluefish, cod and false albacore.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Sea run trout seminar<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">The Narragansett Chapter of Trout Unlimited (TU225) will host its monthly membership meeting on Wednesday, September 27<sup>th</sup>, 2017, 6:30 p.m. at the Coventry/West Greenwich Elks Lodge, 42 Nooseneck Hill Road (Rte. 3, Exit 6 off of Rte. 95), West Greenwich, R.I.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">After a short chapter meeting, Ron Lasko will give a presentation titled ‘<i>Beyond a tale of two rivers – a future for sea run brook trout’</i>.&nbsp; Lasko is the author of <i>‘A tale of two rivers’</i> which is the ecological, and historical story of Cape Cod’s sea run brook trout.&nbsp; For additional information contact Glenn Place at 1-401-225-7712 or at <a href="mailto:TU225President@gmail.com">TU225President@gmail.com</a> . &nbsp;&nbsp;</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Where’s the bite<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>False albacore (albies)</b> <b>and bonito</b> fishing was very good this week as false albacore and some bonito were running along our coastline from Watch Hill to the Sakonnet River with reports from the East Fishing Grounds and other areas lighting up too.&nbsp; The most intense contact was around Pt. Judith both toward Westerly and north to Narragansett Beach.&nbsp; Angler Adam Maziarz said on the RISAA blog he landed a nice bonito off Scarborough Beach Saturday.&nbsp; Maziarz said, “They <span style="background: white;">put on a quite a show, occasionally getting completely airborne. I managed to catch a bonito on a pink Hogy epoxy jig, which made the trip worthwhile. They seemed fairly picky; I tried many colors of epoxy jigs attempting to match the hatch but the pink did the trick.”&nbsp; Dave Henault of Ocean State Tackle, Providence said, “Albies and bonito were thick, acres of them from Pt. Judith to Block Island feeding on peanut bunker. Popular places to land them from shore include the West Wall at the Harbor of Refuge, Fort Getty, Jamestown and Sakonnet Point.”&nbsp; Dimitri Mancini of Continental Bait &amp; Tackle, Cranston said, “Diego Vargas, one of our good customers and an outstanding fisherman, fished the East Fishing Grounds Saturday and landed false albacore and his party limited out on extra-large black sea bass underneath.&nbsp; Large bluefish were on the surface too.”<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="background: white;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background: white;">Tautog fishing is spotty.</span></b><span style="background: white;">&nbsp; Some anglers landing fish in the upper Bay but the best bite has been in the lower Bay with some tautog anglers landing fish to ten pounds.&nbsp; John Littlefield of Archie’s Bait &amp; Tackle, Riverside said, “Customers are trying to hook up with tautog from shore but are not having much luck at places such as Wharf Tavern.&nbsp; But, I did hear the bite at Castle Hill, Newport was good.”&nbsp; Charlie and Carole</span> Prisco of Warwick caught keeper tautog in the upper Bay last week, the fish were there with small ones too but as Charlie said, “The tautog bite is on.”<b><o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><span style="background: white;">Striped bass</span></b><span style="background: white;"> fishing is the Bay is not good however the bluefish bite exploded this week in the east passage and south of Conimicut Light.&nbsp; “The bluefish bite off Barrington Beach and south of Conimicut Point was good this weekend.&nbsp; The blues were feeding on schools of peanut bunker.” said John Littlefield of Archie’s Bait &amp; Tackle.&nbsp; The bass bite at Block Island was on and off last week.&nbsp; “The bite has been early in the morning.&nbsp; We have been leaving the dock at Pt. Judith at 5:00 a.m.” said Capt. Rick Bellavance of Priority Too Charters.&nbsp; Some days you arrive at the Island and the bite is on other days the fish are just not there. &nbsp;Dave Henault of Ocean State Tackle said, “The striped bass bite at the Cape Cod Canal continues to be outstanding.&nbsp; Anglers are landing pass in the 40 pound range from shore.&nbsp; The ‘Whip it Fish’ by Al Gag’s, a soft plastic lure, is working very well for Canal fishermen. Dimitri Mancini of Continental Bait &amp; Tackle said, “The striped bass bite for customers fishing the Cape Cod Canal has been staggering.&nbsp; Better than it has ever been.&nbsp; Hogy soft plastic lures are working well. It has been a very successful lure for our customers fishing the Canal and comes in a variety of colors with white and pink working the best lately.”<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="background: white;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><span style="background: white;">Black sea bass, scup and summer flounder.</span></b><span style="background: white;">&nbsp; Anglers are reminded that the black sea bass season in Rhode Island and Federal waters is closed this Friday, September 22 to October 21.&nbsp; The season opens again on October 22 with a seven fish/person/day limit.&nbsp; The closure in the fall was a tradeoff for the season staring a month earlier in June this year.&nbsp; “The scup bite is strong at Sabin Point and Colt State Park with anglers often reaching their 30 fish limit.&nbsp; They are also catching a lot of northern kingfish.”&nbsp; said John Littlefield of Archie’s Bait.&nbsp; This weekend anglers fishing my dock and the Town Dock in Wickford were landing scup, northern kingfish, skipjack bluefish and an occasional summer flounder.&nbsp;&nbsp; I fished off Beavertail Point this weekend with my brother Henry, Mike and friend Kevin.&nbsp; They landed summer flounder, black sea bass and scup with a slow pick of keepers.&nbsp;&nbsp;</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><span style="background: white;">Cod fishing</span></b><span style="background: white;"> is starting to pick-up with anglers targeting them at the East Grounds and Cox’s Ledge. Capt. Frank Blount of the Frances Fleet</span><span style="background: white;">&nbsp;said, “Hi hook this Saturday was four cod with a decent number of fishers having two apiece. There were some large sea flounder to over four pounds and a few big fluke to 11 pounds along with a nice assortment of ling including some real "baseball" bat size specimens. Both jigs and bait produced on the cod fish.”</span><span style="background: white;"><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="background: white;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"> </div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background: white;">Freshwater fishing</span></b><span style="background: white;"> continues to be good in area lakes and ponds.&nbsp; “The largemouth bass bite is good in ponds at Rehoboth, MA and at the Brickyard Pond in Barrington where one of my customers caught a six pound catfish this week<b>.</b>” said John Littlefield of Archie’s Bait &amp; Tackle.&nbsp; “The largemouth bass bite is very solid with three and four pound fish being landed fairly common in places like Meshanticut Lake and Randall Pond in Cranston.”</span><b> </b>said Dimitri Mancini of Continental Bait.&nbsp; Noah Brunelli (13 years old) and his brother Zach Brunelli found a good largemouth bass bite to 4.9 pounds on the Saugatucket River.&nbsp; They caught multiple bass using worms dug from the woods near their home in Wakefield, RI.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><i><br /></i></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><i><br /></i></div>Captain Dave Montihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16831022398407972345noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1441293999360934440.post-76291032213778319572017-10-09T06:03:00.003-07:002017-10-09T06:03:57.134-07:00Learn from tautog experts<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-AvooC5qk0dE/WdtxP6Du4TI/AAAAAAAACKU/A66ZGgn5uywrK5ARnyFqpUYkNa37Kf4tQCLcBGAs/s1600/Carole%2BPrisco%2B-%2BPHot%2BA.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-AvooC5qk0dE/WdtxP6Du4TI/AAAAAAAACKU/A66ZGgn5uywrK5ARnyFqpUYkNa37Kf4tQCLcBGAs/s320/Carole%2BPrisco%2B-%2BPHot%2BA.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><i>&nbsp;Carole Prisco of Warwick caught these keeper tautog in upper Narragansett Bay Monday.</i><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><o:p></o:p></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-AEHnzpV-v_U/WdtxTFVEg1I/AAAAAAAACKY/JickzlfybuoACr_7ylop3RTKLqNWnUYCwCLcBGAs/s1600/JB%2Btautog%2B-%2BPhoto%2BB.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1057" data-original-width="1071" height="315" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-AEHnzpV-v_U/WdtxTFVEg1I/AAAAAAAACKY/JickzlfybuoACr_7ylop3RTKLqNWnUYCwCLcBGAs/s320/JB%2Btautog%2B-%2BPhoto%2BB.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><i>Capt. Joe Bleczinski, who caught this 18.9 pound tautog off Narragansett in 2015 said, “I knew it was a big fish when the boat stared to move sideways.”&nbsp; He will be a RISAA tautog panelist on Sept. 25<sup>th</sup>.</i><o:p></o:p></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-F1gCS4QFqL4/Wdtyk6JJuSI/AAAAAAAACKk/CWSykA_5AB8-xr2HiAXS5xdvNoaL6gPAgCLcBGAs/s1600/Kyle%2BDawson%2B1st%2Bplace%2B-%2BPhoto%2BD%2Bv1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1176" data-original-width="1600" height="235" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-F1gCS4QFqL4/Wdtyk6JJuSI/AAAAAAAACKk/CWSykA_5AB8-xr2HiAXS5xdvNoaL6gPAgCLcBGAs/s320/Kyle%2BDawson%2B1st%2Bplace%2B-%2BPhoto%2BD%2Bv1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><i>&nbsp;Kyle Dawson of Wakefield took first place in the 2nd Annual Snug Harbor Billy Carr Midnight Madness Striper Tournament this weekend with this 49.88 pound striped bass.&nbsp;</i><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><o:p></o:p></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sSOpmHH8p4M/WdtyopN6hzI/AAAAAAAACKo/5vP6hvRcPv8lGrmoL4t9WpIeAk9cUOaTgCLcBGAs/s1600/False%2BAlbacore%2Bon%2Bthe%2Brun%2B-%2BPhoto%2BE.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="603" data-original-width="402" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sSOpmHH8p4M/WdtyopN6hzI/AAAAAAAACKo/5vP6hvRcPv8lGrmoL4t9WpIeAk9cUOaTgCLcBGAs/s320/False%2BAlbacore%2Bon%2Bthe%2Brun%2B-%2BPhoto%2BE.jpg" width="213" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;"><i>Mike Gallanti with a false albacore he caught this week on the West Wall of the Harbor of Refuge, South Kingstown.</i></span><br /><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Learn from tautog experts<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">“In the fall you can fish for striped bass, tuna, bonito and false albacore, black sea bass, scup, cod, tautog and more.&nbsp; Fall is arguably the greatest time of year to fish.” said Capt. Rick Bellavance, president of the Rhode Island Party &amp; Charter Boat Association (RIPCBA). <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">With the summer flounder season winding down anglers are starting to focus their attention on tautog. If you ever wanted to fish for tautog, now is the time to learn and fish for them.&nbsp; The bite is on with anglers catching keeper sized fish in our Bays and along the coastal shore.&nbsp; And, starting October 15<sup>th</sup> the limit jumps from three fish to six fish/angler/day with a ten fish per boat maximum (does not apply to charter or party boats).<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Here are two great ways to learn how to tautog fish.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Attend a ‘Tautog Experts’ seminar at the West Warwick Elks held by RI Saltwater Anglers Association (RISAA) Monday, September 25, 7:00 p.m. or visit the RI Party &amp; Charter Boat Association website at <a href="http://www.rifishing.com/">www.rifishing.com</a>for a list of charter and party boats with boat photos and rates that can take you on a learn how to tautog fishing charter.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">On September 25 join Travis Barao, a RISAA board member who has fished for tautog in the Fall River, Newport and Sakonnet River areas; Capt. Joseph Bleczinski who caught a 16 pound tautog at Whale Rock, Narragansett two years ago; and Richard Reich noted shore and boat angler (Richard took 2<sup>nd</sup> place shore division in the Snug Harbor Billy Carr Midnight Madness Striper Tournament last week, see below story). Learn tautog tips, tactics, gear, rigs, baits and where to fish for them during this panel style seminar. Visit <a href="http://www.risaa.org/">www.risaa.org</a>for details.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Non-member admission is a $10 donation to the RISAA Scholarship Fund, RISAA members attend free. Dinner served at 5:30 p.m. provided by the Elks for a separate fee.&nbsp; The presentation starts at 7:00 p.m.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Snug Harbor tournament big success<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Kyle Dawson of Wakefield took first place in the 2nd Annual Snug Harbor Billy Carr Midnight Madness Striper Tournament this weekend with a 49.88 pound striped bass.&nbsp;&nbsp; Scott Carleston of Warren took second place with at 42.58 pound fish and Howard Eman of Narragansett took third place with a 40.9 pound fish.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Elisa Cahill of Snug Harbor Marina said, ”We had a 10% increase in anglers this year and will donate over $4,000 to the Point Judith Fisherman’s Foundation in the name of Billy Carr. We had 20 surf and 52 boat anglers participate.”<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">First place in the surf division went to Ron Rego of Providence with a 27.9 pound fish, and second place went to Rich Reich with a 26.02 pound fish.&nbsp; Brett Carr (Billy Carr’s nephew) won the Junior Division with a 27.44 pound striped bass.&nbsp; Visit <a href="http://www.snugharbormarina.com/">www.snugharbormarina.com</a> for details.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Where’s the bite<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><span style="background: white;">Freshwater fishing. </span></b><span style="background: white;">“The bass bite at Brickyard Pond in Barrington has been pretty good.&nbsp; I had two Dads come back for more shiners as they fished with their sons and ran out.&nbsp; Night crawlers are selling fairly well too.” said Manny Macedo of Lucky Bait &amp; Tackle, Warren.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="background: white;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><span style="background: white;">Tautog </span></b><span style="background: white;">fishing is just starting to get active.&nbsp; Anglers fishing last week were catching keepers but they were small. Carole Prisco of Warwick caught two nice keeper tautog when fishing with her husband Charlie this past Monday on a rock pile in the upper Bay.&nbsp; Mike Wade of Watch Hill Outfitters, Westerly said, “Tautog are in shallow water areas but most keepers caught are on the small side.&nbsp; We have not had a lot of anglers targeting tautog yet.” Ken Ferrara of Ray’s Bait &amp; Tackle, Warwick said, “Customers were catching fish off Brenton Reef Newport and around Hope Island in the Bay but they were all just over size 16”.”&nbsp; Manny Macedo of Lucky bait said, “Customers are catching tautog at Colt State Park and in Tiverton but they are barely keepers.”<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="background: white;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><span style="background: white;">Striped bass and bluefish.&nbsp; </span></b><span style="background: white;">I fished southeast of Beavertail Light Sunday and there was about a half square mile of bluefish feeding on sand eels.&nbsp; The fish finder would light up with school of bait from surface to bottom.&nbsp; The black sea bass and scup bite was excellent there as well.&nbsp; Did not have a chance to see if there were striped bass under the bluefish.&nbsp; Ken Ferrara of Ray’s Bait said, “The Bay is loaded with bluefish with schools popping up everywhere.”&nbsp; Manny Macedo of Lucky Bait said “One of our customers landed a 32” striped bass a Popasquash Point, Bristol last week.&nbsp; So the bass are starting to pop up again, some fish are being caught off Newport too.”&nbsp; Mike Wade of Watch Hill Outfitters said, “The bass bite at Block Island has been good with fish still feeding mackerel.&nbsp; Fishing is better closer to shore in places like Black Rock.”</span><o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="background: white;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Summer flounder (fluke), black sea bass and scup. </b><span style="background: white;">&nbsp;</span><span style="background: white;">Capt. Frank Blount of the Frances Fleet said, “Due to big seas we were only able to get out Monday and Saturday last week. &nbsp;Monday did produce some nice fish both fluke and black sea bass with a behemoth 13 pound fluke caught by a customer from CT. That fish is one of the biggest of the year. Top fish caught Saturday was around ten pounds. Some scup, an occasional cod fish and or ocean perch were mixed in.”&nbsp; The black sea bass bite was consistent Sunday and Tuesday off Beavertail. Sunday I caught about 20 fish in two hours, 25% of them were keepers with the largest fish topping out at 22 inches.&nbsp; Large scup to 16” caught on the drift there as well.&nbsp; The action was much the same on Tuesday when we fished about a mile southeast of Beavertail. Manny Macedo of Lucky Bait said, “Large scup are being caught from the Warren River to Popasquash Point, Bristol.&nbsp; Customer said the largest ones were a black color which is a bit unusual.”</span><span style="background: white;"><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="background: white;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><span style="background: white;">From the shore.&nbsp; </span></b><span style="background: white;">Mike Wade of Watch Hill Outfitters said, “The striped bass bite with blue fish mixed in has been very good from the shore for the past two weeks.&nbsp; Quonnie, Weekapaug and East Beach have all been very good with fish averaging about 36” and blue fish in the two to ten pound range.&nbsp; We also have a good scup and tautog bite from Watch Hill Light and from the breachways.” <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="background: white;"><br /></span></div><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: #F1F0F0; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .75pt;"><b><span style="background: white;">False albacore</span></b><span style="background: white;"> are out in front along the coast.&nbsp; Dave Henault of Ocean State Tackle, Providence said, “False albacore are west wall and all along the coast to Little Compton and Westport.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>Captain Dave Montihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16831022398407972345noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1441293999360934440.post-79089422854459133452017-10-09T05:51:00.001-07:002017-10-09T05:51:34.728-07:00Get ready for a tug of war<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-VgzeK0PBo24/WdtvRQwI4PI/AAAAAAAACKA/8xGC1zYrV14bISIVVP1hxxmBfkBp3oqoACLcBGAs/s1600/Tautog%2Bbite%2BPhoto%2BA.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="652" data-original-width="935" height="223" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-VgzeK0PBo24/WdtvRQwI4PI/AAAAAAAACKA/8xGC1zYrV14bISIVVP1hxxmBfkBp3oqoACLcBGAs/s320/Tautog%2Bbite%2BPhoto%2BA.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><i>&nbsp;Vicktor Tang of New York had a big day tautog fishing last fall aboard Flippin Out Charters with Capt. B.J. Silvia.&nbsp; He hooked this 11.5 pound tautog when fishing in Narragansett Bay.</i><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><o:p></o:p></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-OAGvzNyXGjc/WdtvaQWY6DI/AAAAAAAACKI/_0epREc6Kp4JVUy-ZQQv8giKYk6oOSStACLcBGAs/s1600/JL%2BCox%2527s%2BBSB%2B-%2BPhoto%2BC.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1563" data-original-width="1509" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-OAGvzNyXGjc/WdtvaQWY6DI/AAAAAAAACKI/_0epREc6Kp4JVUy-ZQQv8giKYk6oOSStACLcBGAs/s320/JL%2BCox%2527s%2BBSB%2B-%2BPhoto%2BC.jpg" width="308" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><i>Jack Leyden of North Kingstown (shown in photo) and Steve Sears of Seekonk boated multiple cod and black sea bass when fishing Cox’s Ledge last week.&nbsp; The cod and black sea bass bite has been great there.</i><o:p></o:p></div><br /><br /><div class="MsoNormal"><b>Get ready for a tug of war</b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal">Tautog fishing is much like a tug of war.&nbsp; Once you hook one the battle is on to keep it from going into structure.&nbsp; Many times anglers hook up on the bottom when fishing for tautog.&nbsp; My experience is half the time the bottom hook up is caused by a fish that takes the angler’s bait into the rocks before they even know it.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">Tautog (or Blackfish) is a great eating fish with a white delicate meat.&nbsp; That’s why anglers love to catch them.&nbsp; The Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management (DEM) regulates recreational tautog fishing.&nbsp; The catch limit in RI until October 14 is three fish/person/day, then it jumps to six fish/person/day on October 15 through December 15.&nbsp; In addition there is a ten fish boat maximum per day limit (which does not apply to party and charter boats).<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">So, get ready, here are five tips to help you have a great fall tautog fishing season.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">1.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Find structure to find tautog.&nbsp; Tautog can be fished from shore or boat and in both cases they like structure (rocks, wrecks, bridge piers, dock pilings, mussel beds, holes and humps along the coast and in the Bay).&nbsp; So no structure, no tautog.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">2.&nbsp; Fish where the fish are.&nbsp; This is particularly true with tautog because they are a territorial species, you have to find the tautog, they are not going to find you.&nbsp; So if you get no bites move to another spot.&nbsp; When you find them, you find them and the bite is on.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">3.&nbsp; Boat placement is important.&nbsp; Find structure, estimate wind/drift direction and anchor up current from where you want to fish and drift back to the spot as the anchor is setting.&nbsp; Once in position fish all sides of the boat casting a bit to cover as much area as you can.&nbsp; If still no bites let some anchor line out (a couple of times) to change your position, if still no bites it is time to move the vessel.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">4.&nbsp;&nbsp; Feel the bite… tap, tap and then get ready for a tug of war.&nbsp; I believe with the first tap the tautog is positioning the bait for consumption.&nbsp; So get ready to set the hook anticipating the second tap before the fish takes your bait into structure.&nbsp; Once the fish is hooked, keep the rod up and pressure on so the fish in not able to run for cover.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">5. &nbsp;Where to fish for Tautog.&nbsp; From shore look for rocky coastline like Beavertail Point on Jamestown, locations off Newport and off breakwater rock walls along the southern coastal shore.&nbsp; From a boat I have had good luck at Plum Point light house next to the Jamestown Bridge, the rock jetty at Coddington Cove in Portsmouth, off Hope Island, General Rock in North Kingstown, around Brenton Reef and Seal Ledge off Newport, off Narragansett at rock clusters or the bolder field off Scarborough, Whale Rock, Ohio Ledge in the East Passage and any other place there is structure, debris, rock clusters, wrecks, etc.&nbsp; It’s good to find your own spots as popular ones often get overfished.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Plan in place for harmful algae <o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">The Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management (DEM) will hold an informational meeting to review Rhode Island’s new monitoring and contingency response plan for harmful algae blooms (HAB). The meeting will take place Tuesday, September 12, 5:00 p.m. in the Hazard Room, URI Coastal Institute Building on South Ferry Road, Narragansett.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="Default" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="Default" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Last year, Rhode Island experienced its first HAB caused by the presence of toxic phytoplankton in local waters; the event triggered an emergency closure of the state’s shellfishing areas. A subsequent bloom earlier this year resulted in a second emergency closure of some waters. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="Default" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="Default" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">As part of the workshop, officials will review routine monitoring efforts for phytoplankton in the state’s waters as well as new emergency protocols in the case a HAB is detected. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="Default" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="Default" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Along with its partners, DEM successfully managed the earlier HAB events, ensuring all local shellfish products on the market remained safe. During the emergency closures, partners worked swiftly to collect and test over 190 water and shellfish samples for harmful algae and domoic acid, a toxin responsible for amnesic shellfish poisoning in humans. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="Default" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="Default" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Waters were reopened when all samples tested below levels of concern. In the wake of these events, DEM worked with its partners to update the state’s Harmful Algae Bloom and Shellfish Biotoxin Monitoring and Contingency Plan, which will be reviewed during next month’s workshop. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="Default" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="Default" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The plan in its entirety can be viewed at </span><a href="http://www.dem.ri.gov/shellfish"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">www.dem.ri.gov/shellfish</span></a><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> . -<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="Default"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Where’s the bite<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><span style="background: white;">Striped bass and bluefish.&nbsp; </span></b><span style="background: white;">“The striped bass bite is excellent for boats but has slowed a bit from shore.&nbsp; It’s spotty. Last night (Sunday) shore fishermen did well with bass from the breachway using plugs and eels.” said Mike Cardinal of Misquamicut Bait &amp; Tackle, Westerly.&nbsp; </span>Spoke with Capt. Randy Bagwell of Rebel Charters when at Lucky Bait in Warren.&nbsp; Capt. Bagwell said, “Block Island has been hit or miss for bass.&nbsp; We were out there last week and did not hook up but were going to give it another try today (Monday) but cancelled the trip due to high seas.&nbsp; There seemed to be bluefish out there but did not see anyone hooking up with striped bass.&nbsp; Some nice bass have been caught off Newport with Capt. BJ Silvia of Flippin Out Charters landing some nice fish off Newport this week.”&nbsp; The bluefish bite from the Sakonnet River to Pt. Judith has been very good this past week with bluefish often surfacing in schools trapping bait on the surface in a feeding frenzy.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Summer flounder (fluke) and black sea bass. </b>“The fluke bite has slowed along the southern coastal shore.” said Mike Cardinal of Misquamicut Bait &amp; Tackle.&nbsp; <span style="background: white;">Capt. Randy Bagwell said, “We had no trouble hitting our limit of black sea bass at Block Island (sea bass went to seven fish/angler/day on September 1).&nbsp;&nbsp; They were all filled with sand ells and small lobsters. The fluke fishing was not good at the Island the day we were there.” Black sea bass fishing was also good at Cox’s Ledge.&nbsp; Anglers Jack Leyden of North Kingstown and Steve Sears of Seekonk had no trouble hooking up with black sea bass as they fished for cod at the Ledge.&nbsp; Capt. Frank Blount of the Frances Fleet </span><span style="background: white;">said, “T</span><span style="background: white;">he full day fluke/sea bass trips were outstanding Monday and Saturday this past week. Both trips saw lots of angler limits of both fluke and sea bass and both trips saw a lot of quality fluke over 5 pounds and on Saturday two fish in the 10 pound range fought it out for bragging rights. Saturday's run was also punctuated by an extreme amount of sand eels causing the sea bass to be stacked up 20-30 feet thick.”</span><span style="background: white;"><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="background: white;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><span style="background: white; font-family: Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 150%;">Scup </span></b><span style="background: white; font-family: Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 150%;">fishing is good.<b> </b></span><span style="background: white;">Mike Cardinal of Misquamicut Bait &amp; tackle said, “Anglers are doing well with porgies from the Quonnie Breachway. </span><span style="background: white;">I fished for scup twice last week with 4, 7 and 9 year old children on board and they all did well with scup to 15” in lower Narragansett Bay along the western side of Jamestown. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="background: white;"><br /></span></div><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><span style="background: white;">Cod fishing </span></b><span style="background: white;">at Cox’s Ledge was good last week anglers finding the cod are boating fish to twenty pounds and are having not trouble reaching their seven fish limit of black sea bass.<b><o:p></o:p></b></span></div>Captain Dave Montihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16831022398407972345noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1441293999360934440.post-7177525180376826992017-08-18T09:58:00.001-07:002017-08-18T09:58:59.172-07:00Trophy bluefin tuna fishing closes<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-i8MIlTUFegA/WZca4DYSVwI/AAAAAAAACJk/F5VdZUCOgAcCGOMKP9MGnPDR5_O_aM_gwCLcBGAs/s1600/CS%2Band%2BJL%2BBlock%2BIsland%2Bbass%2B-%2BPhoto%2BC%2B%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><i><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1145" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-i8MIlTUFegA/WZca4DYSVwI/AAAAAAAACJk/F5VdZUCOgAcCGOMKP9MGnPDR5_O_aM_gwCLcBGAs/s320/CS%2Band%2BJL%2BBlock%2BIsland%2Bbass%2B-%2BPhoto%2BC%2B%25282%2529.JPG" width="229" /></i></a></div><i>&nbsp;Connor Sears (11) of Seekonk, MA and Jack Leyden of North Kingstown with the 35 and 40 pound striped bass they caught at night fishing with eels on the Southwest Ledge off Block Island.</i><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><i><o:p></o:p></i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-W5NxzJZrt2s/WZca_cTJR4I/AAAAAAAACJo/yyIpvE49mIkNX-IRQlxlt9KrgaTSRLh8ACLcBGAs/s1600/10%2Bpound%2Bfluke%2B-%2BPhoto%2BB2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><i><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1354" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-W5NxzJZrt2s/WZca_cTJR4I/AAAAAAAACJo/yyIpvE49mIkNX-IRQlxlt9KrgaTSRLh8ACLcBGAs/s320/10%2Bpound%2Bfluke%2B-%2BPhoto%2BB2.jpg" width="270" /></i></a></div><i>Ten pound fluke caught aboard the Frances Fleet last week by angler John Topper of Bristol, RI.</i><br /><i><br /></i><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Trophy bluefin tuna fishery closes<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Effective August 11<sup>th</sup>, NOAA Fisheries closed the Atlantic bluefin tuna (BFT) angling category for large medium and giant ‘trophy’ BFT measuring 73” or greater in the Northern area.&nbsp; The fishery closed based on reported landings from the Automated Catch Reporting System.&nbsp; NOAA determined that the trophy BFT subguota has been reached and that the trophy fishery should be closed.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">In an advisory last week NOAA said, “Retaining, possessing or landing large medium or giant BFT by persons aboard vessels permitted in the HMS Angling category and the HMS Charter/Headboat category (when fishing recreationally) must cease.”<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">The intent of this closure is to prevent overharvesting. The Southern and Gulf of Mexico areas closed June 7<sup>th</sup>, 2017.&nbsp; Catch and release fishing is permissible.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Fishing for BFT between 27”to <47 47="" allowed.="" and="" angling-permitted="" b="" bft="" charter="" eadboat-permitted="" fish="" for="" hms="" is="" large="" medium="" nbsp="" one="" school="" small="" still="" three="" two="" vessels=""><o:p></o:p></47></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">At press time, NOAA issued an advisory that temporarily closed the General and Charter/Headboat categories when fishing commercially.&nbsp; NOAA said, “Retain<span style="background: white;">ing, possessing, or landing large medium or giant BFT by persons aboard vessels permitted in the Atlantic tunas General and Highly Migratory Species (HMS) Charter/ Headboat categories (when fishing commercially) must cease at 11:30 p.m. local time on August 16, 2017, through August 31, 2017</span><span style="background: white;">.”</span> <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="background: white;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Visit <a href="https://hmspermits.noaa.gov/">https://hmspermits.noaa.gov</a> for regulations that change as category quotas are met.<b> <o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><b>Where’s the bite?<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">“<b>Striped bass</b> fishing off the Watch Hill reefs has been very good this past week.&nbsp; Capt. Tim Terranova of Bonito II Sportfishing Charters landed a 50 pound bass this week trolling wire.&nbsp; Several anglers have picked up thirty plus pound bass on the reef live lining scup. Overall we have had a very active food chain off Montauk starting with sand eels, maceral and thresher sharks and in shore along the southern coastal shore bay anchovies are attracting bonito.”&nbsp; said Mike Wade of Watch Hill Outfitters, Westerly. “We were fishing the Southwest Ledge off Block Island late last week at night and landed a 40 and 35 pound striped bass using eels.&nbsp; We fished from sunset to about midnight and then the bite turned on.&nbsp; We hit two big fish at once then lost four other fish.&nbsp; Connor Sears (11 years old) of Seekonk caught a 35 pound bass and I hooked a 40 pound fish at the same time.” said Jack Leyden of North Kingstown.&nbsp; Elisa Cahill of Snug Harbor Marina said, “The bass bite at the Ledge is still good, the night bite is on eels but anglers are still landing fish in the day trolling umbrella rigs with a lot of bluefish mixed in.” Kianna Macedo of Lucky Bait &amp; Tackle, Warren said, “School bass are still fairly plentiful in the Bay and along the coast and one customer reported catching a keeper in the Bay so hopefully they will be coming back into the Bay.”<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Summer flounder (fluke).</b> “Fluke fishing along the southern coastal shore from Misquamicut Beach to Watch Hill has been good, particularly over rocky areas like Old Reef off Weekapaug.” said Mike Wade of Watch Hill Outfitters.” Fishing at Block Island was spotty this week.&nbsp; Plenty of black sea bass but you were either on or off the fluke and had to look around for them.&nbsp; The fluke bite in the lower bay north and south of the Jamestown and Newport Bridges was slow this week with anglers finding keepers far and few between.&nbsp; Capt. Frank Blount of the Francis Fleet said, “<span style="background: white;">Trips were affected by little to no drift last week. This equated to buck tail set ups tipped with white or green gulp far out producing anything else. Still limit catches were recorded by a few fishers each outing. The largest fluke of the week was a 10 pound fish taken by John Topper of Bristol RI.” Fluke fishing at the mouth of the Sakonnet River has been fair. “This week the southern shore fluke bite was in about 65 feet of water off Watch Hill.&nbsp; The bite at the wind farm at Block Island and at the Hooter buoy slowed this week.” said Elisa Cahill of Snug Harbor.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="background: white;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><span style="background: white;">Tautog.</span></b><span style="background: white;">&nbsp; With the fishing bite slowing down in the Bay some anglers are starting to target tautog with limited success.&nbsp; “Anglers are catching small fish in low water (15 feet) at rock piles along the southern shore. &nbsp;Not many reports of keepers caught.&nbsp; The fish are still in that low water.” said Elisa Cahill of Snug Harbor. Kiana Macedo of Lucky Bait &amp; Tackle, Warren said, “We have reports of angles catching keeper tautog at Colt State Park.” “Customers targeting tautog from shore at Ft. Adams, Newport caught shorts only.” said John Littlefield of Archie’s Bait &amp; Tackle, Riverside.&nbsp;<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="background: white;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><span style="background: white;">Scup </span></b><span style="background: white;">fishing continues to be strong in the Bay and along the coast.&nbsp; “Colt State Park has been yielding some nice scup for customers.” said Kiana Macedo of Lucky Bait. “Scup fishing has been very good all over the Bay with an awful lot of sea robins being caught too. But that has been about it.” said John Littlefield of Archie’ Bait.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="background: white;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><span style="background: white;">Bonito/false albacore </span></b><span style="background: white;">are in.&nbsp; Mike Wade of Watch Hill Outfitters said, “The Bay anchovies are in shore and Bonito are feeding on them.”&nbsp; Matt Conti of Snug Harbor Marian said, “We have reports of customers catching Bonito so they have arrived.” Elisa Chill of Snug Harbor said, “Bonito and false albacore have been up and down but they are around.&nbsp; Bob Kolb’s grandson (six) caught a false albacore when fluke fishing with a bucktail at Nebraska Shoal.”<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="background: white;"><br /></span></div><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><span style="background: white;">Offshore/cod</span></b><span style="background: white;"> fishing continues to be good. Eric Duda reports on the RISAA blog “</span>Cox’s ledge has been very good last couple of weeks for Cod. South side, east or west in about 130 feet of water. Make sure you move around a lot to find them.&nbsp; Everyone I have caught has been a keeper size, average around 6 pounds with the largest about 14 pounds most trips. Both jigging and clams have been working. A lot of ling out there too. Never tried ling before, but now it’s one of my favorites for dinner. Two weeks ago, saw a lot of Mahi around high fliers but last week only one or two.”&nbsp; Elisa Cahill of Snug Harbor said, “The bluefin tuna bite at the Tuna Ridge, the Suffix, the Gully, Cox’s Ledge and the North West Corner of the Dump has been good.&nbsp; Customers are catching them on the troll with Green Machines and Ballyhoo’s.&nbsp; There has been some white marlin around too.&nbsp; Dean Venticinque of the charter fishing vessel Twenty-five spotted three white marlin sunning themselves at the Mudhole.&nbsp; He caught and released one earlier this week.”&nbsp; Cahill said, “Cod fishing at the southeast corner of Cox’s Ledge has been good.&nbsp; Customer Phil Bertoncini did well there this week.”<o:p></o:p></div>Captain Dave Montihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16831022398407972345noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1441293999360934440.post-44866950055938970852017-08-15T11:35:00.000-07:002017-08-15T11:35:30.167-07:00Robotic bait lands 340 pound bluefin tuna<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-csnVOpuc7vU/WZM7yG6P-LI/AAAAAAAACI8/L0ZB3wQT66cNsPApTiDGK4xsILYjPJplQCLcBGAs/s1600/Alex%2Band%2Bcrew%2B-%2BPhoto%2BA.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><i><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="720" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-csnVOpuc7vU/WZM7yG6P-LI/AAAAAAAACI8/L0ZB3wQT66cNsPApTiDGK4xsILYjPJplQCLcBGAs/s320/Alex%2Band%2Bcrew%2B-%2BPhoto%2BA.jpg" width="240" /></i></a></div><i>&nbsp;Alex Petrucci Sr (center standing), Alex Jr (kneeling to left) and their crew caught a 340 bluefin tuna using a robotic Zombait.</i><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><i><o:p></o:p></i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-8fbfX47hXJ8/WZM71uw0yJI/AAAAAAAACJA/g76jFEVUdic9rEvk6bh8vNLbPx0Jh40zgCLcBGAs/s1600/Zombait%2B-%2BPhoto%2BA.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><i><img border="0" data-original-height="399" data-original-width="600" height="212" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-8fbfX47hXJ8/WZM71uw0yJI/AAAAAAAACJA/g76jFEVUdic9rEvk6bh8vNLbPx0Jh40zgCLcBGAs/s320/Zombait%2B-%2BPhoto%2BA.png" width="320" /></i></a></div><i>&nbsp;Zombait, the first robotic bait of its type, is stuck into the mouth of a dead bait fish larger than 8" to make it wiggle like a live bait.</i><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CQh4KQ70Mk8/WZM73jzx5HI/AAAAAAAACJE/gGQu6T3MiPwfSJhov7dnGKFjbBcsK_caACLcBGAs/s1600/Pike%2BEric%2BSchenck%2B-%2BPhoto%2BE%2B%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><i><img border="0" data-original-height="554" data-original-width="540" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CQh4KQ70Mk8/WZM73jzx5HI/AAAAAAAACJE/gGQu6T3MiPwfSJhov7dnGKFjbBcsK_caACLcBGAs/s320/Pike%2BEric%2BSchenck%2B-%2BPhoto%2BE%2B%25282%2529.jpg" width="311" /></i></a></div><i>&nbsp;Eric Schenk with the 45” pike he caught this weekend while fishing the Blackstone River in Cumberland.</i><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><i><o:p></o:p></i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-lOt14MmoHwk/WZM77BY33II/AAAAAAAACJI/AnKxvtb0n9MsrJxIuIsn73D-rVMTkusUACLcBGAs/s1600/BI%2Bsea%2Bbass%2Bbite%2B-%2BPhoto%2BC2.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><i><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-lOt14MmoHwk/WZM77BY33II/AAAAAAAACJI/AnKxvtb0n9MsrJxIuIsn73D-rVMTkusUACLcBGAs/s320/BI%2Bsea%2Bbass%2Bbite%2B-%2BPhoto%2BC2.jpeg" width="240" /></i></a></div><i>&nbsp;Kelly Urban from Miami with Connor Sears, Seekonk with the black sea bass and other fish they caught Monday off Block Island when fishing with Conner’s father Steve Sears and Jack Leyden.</i><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><i><o:p></o:p></i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2M1wNYMV-EI/WZM7-6qPVzI/AAAAAAAACJM/DOoo7dEF94s0hckDZfY2wcg0P80NnTMZACLcBGAs/s1600/Salt%2BPond%2BBass%2B-%2BPhoto%2BB.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><i><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="631" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2M1wNYMV-EI/WZM7-6qPVzI/AAAAAAAACJM/DOoo7dEF94s0hckDZfY2wcg0P80NnTMZACLcBGAs/s320/Salt%2BPond%2BBass%2B-%2BPhoto%2BB.jpg" width="197" /></i></a></div><i>&nbsp;Seven year old Michael Simpson of Narragansett (right) with the 30 pound striped bass he caught in Salt Pond fishing with eels.&nbsp; Brother Gabe (five) on left.</i><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><i><o:p></o:p></i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hsKmRQ41oP4/WZM8Cj5NsaI/AAAAAAAACJQ/9TQAbSgsrLkqeWoqPUkPK01YuXUthuqHgCLcBGAs/s1600/Three%2Bgenerations%2B-%2BPhoto%2BB.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><i><img border="0" data-original-height="1122" data-original-width="1600" height="224" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hsKmRQ41oP4/WZM8Cj5NsaI/AAAAAAAACJQ/9TQAbSgsrLkqeWoqPUkPK01YuXUthuqHgCLcBGAs/s320/Three%2Bgenerations%2B-%2BPhoto%2BB.JPG" width="320" /></i></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><i>Brothers Jonah and Neil Ellis (on either end), grandfather Sy Janaowsky and Joe Kaufman of North Kingstown fished for fluke, black sea bass and scup this week on the Bay.</i><o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Robotic lure lands 340 pound bluefin<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">“I’ve caught some pretty big bluefin in my day using all types of baits.&nbsp; I’ve fished with bluefish, maceral, even a large live skate behind a scallop boat with success.” said Alex Petrucci of the sport fishing vessel <i>Duck Soup </i>out of Pt. Judith, RI. &nbsp;He was talking about the 340 pound bluefin tuna he, &nbsp;his son Alex Jr and his crew caught at the 6<sup>th</sup> Annual Bluefin Blowout in Gloucester, MA.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">The Petrucci’s catching a large bluefin or other large tournament fish is not uncommon.&nbsp; They have been doing it for years.&nbsp; Alex and his family are fishing legends in Rhode Island.&nbsp; Two years ago they took first place in the Bluefin Blowout Tournament.&nbsp; But what was unusual this year, they caught a fish using a robotic bait called Zombait.&nbsp; To my knowledge Zombait it is the first robotic fishing lure on the market.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Petrucci said, “It’s a lot better than using dead bait.&nbsp; These fish come through and are hungry.&nbsp; They do not stop and analyze things.&nbsp; If it is moving that attracts them.&nbsp; I had faith in this bait or I wouldn’t have been using it.&nbsp; It gave the maceral we were using a nice look on deck and in the water.&nbsp; It was one of six baits we had out at the same time.”<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Zombait creates a realistic, injured swimming fish to attract your prey.&nbsp; You simply insert this electric toothbrush looking bait into the mouth of a dead bait eight inches or larger; attach a hook and the dead bait wiggles around in the water.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Zombait lasts about three hours on a battery charge and is good in water up to 200 feet. Visit <a href="http://www.zombait.com/">www.zombait.com</a> for a demonstration video on how the lure works and information about online sales. Individual units cost about $69 with a charger; a three pack with charger is $159.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">The Bluefin Blowout is sponsored by the Lyon-Waugh Auto Group with all proceeds from the Bluefin Blowout Auction going to the Alzheimer’s Association.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Great Outdoors Pursuit finale with vintage baseball games<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">The Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management (DEM) will hold its Great Outdoors Pursuit finale this Saturday at Rocky Point State Park starting with a vintage baseball game at 10:30 a.m.&nbsp; Family activities will run from 12 noon until 3:30 p.m.&nbsp;<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">The event includes a Rocky Point-themed scavenger hunt, rock wall, lawn games, and food trucks. Educational activities, including a clamming demonstration, marine touch tank, and gymnastic demonstrations, along with informational exhibits will also be offered. <span style="color: #333333;">This event is free and open to the public. Only registered families are eligible for prizes and give-a-ways.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">In addition, a double-header vintage baseball game between the Providence Grays and the New York Mutuals will take place from 10:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.&nbsp; Historically, professional baseball games were held on the grounds of Rocky Point.&nbsp; The most famous exhibition game took place on September 27, 1914, when the Providence Greys played the Chicago Cubs.&nbsp; Slugger Babe Ruth pitched for Providence and also hit a triple in that game.&nbsp;<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>ASMFC approves Atlantic menhaden amendment 3 for public comment<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 13.5pt; margin-top: 0in;">The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s (ASMFC) Atlantic Menhaden Management Board approved Draft Amendment 3 to the Interstate Fishery Management Plan (FMP) for Atlantic Menhaden for public comment. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 13.5pt; margin-top: 0in;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 13.5pt; margin-top: 0in;">The Draft Amendment seeks to manage the menhaden resource in a way that balances menhaden’s ecological role as a prey species with the needs of all user groups. To this end, the Draft Amendment considers the use of ecosystem reference points (ERPs) to manage the resource and changes to the allocation method. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 13.5pt; margin-top: 0in;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 13.5pt; margin-top: 0in;">The amendment also presents a suite of management options for quota transfers, quota rollovers, incidental catch, the episodic events set aside program, and the Chesapeake Bay reduction fishery cap.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 13.5pt; margin-top: 0in;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 13.5pt; margin-top: 0in;">States from Maine to Florida will likely hold public hearings on the draft amendment.&nbsp; Details on hearings are not yet available.&nbsp; Visit <a href="http://www.asmfc.org/">www.asmfc.org</a> &nbsp;for a copy of amendment 3 and details on the hearings when they become available.&nbsp; Public comment on the amendment is open until October 20, 2017.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 13.5pt; margin-top: 0in;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Where’s the bite?<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Freshwater</b>. Neil Hayes of Quaker Lane Bait &amp; Tackle, North Kingstown said, “Last weekend we weighted in a 6.5 pound largemouth bass that the customer is going to have mounted last week.” “Erick Schenck an associated at Ocean State Tackle, Providence caught a 45” pike this weekend on the Blackstone River in Cumberland.” said Dave Henault of Ocean State. The trout bite continues to be slow with warm water and stocked ponds that have been fished out.&nbsp; However, the largemouth bass bite is fairly strong.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Striped bass.</b> “Bass at the Block Island’s Southwest Ledge is either hot or cold.&nbsp; Eels continue to work along with umbrella rigs.&nbsp; And the bite from shore is fair.” said Matt Conti of Snug Harbor Marina, South Kingstown.&nbsp; Dave Henault of Ocean State Tackle said, “The best bet for fishing for stripers in the Bay right now is either tube and worm or umbrella rigs as the fish are dispersed.&nbsp; From the surf, along the southern coastal shore anglers are doing fairly well.” Neil Hayes of Quaker Lane said, “We have had a good bite with eels off Jamestown and Newport and a great bite with large fish at Block Island.&nbsp; Customers are also trolling umbrella rigs and tube &amp; worm with success.” <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Summer flounder (fluke) and black sea bass</b>.&nbsp; I fished the Newport and Jamestown Bridge areas a couple of times this weekend and the fluke bite was slow.&nbsp; Matt Conti of Snug Harbor said, “Fluke fishing is good at the Hooter Buoy along the south shore and on Block Island.&nbsp; Some days the windmill area is hot and other days East Fishing Grounds.&nbsp; The West Wall of the Harbor of Refuge is yielding fluke for those fishing from shore along with scup and black sea bass.” “Fishing off Newport and Jamestown has been good for anglers, fish are in deep water (80 feet).&nbsp; However, I’d like to remind anglers that fluke can be caught in very low water this time of year too (15 to 20 feet).”, said Dave Henault of Ocean State Tackle.&nbsp; Angler Jack Leyden said, “Monday Steve Sears and I took friends and family fishing off Block Island and netted over nine black sea bass, a fluke, scup and bluefish in two hours on a drift from the Southwest Ledge to the wind farm area in 60 to 80 feet of water.”&nbsp; Capt. Frank Blount of the Frances Fleet said, “<span style="background: white;">Limits of sea bass were common this week with some limits of fluke. A lack of good drift on a number of outings put buck tail jigs and gulp products in the lead for top producers. As always these things change from day to day.” </span><o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="background: white;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"> </div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>“Offshore</b> fishing exploded this week with a great bluefin tuna bite (the best this year so far). Customers have landed 35” to 45” bluefin from Tuna Ridge to the Northwest comer of the Dump.&nbsp; Most are taking them on the troll now hooking up with white Marlin as well as mahi mahi.” said Matt Conti of Snug Harbor Marina. “We have reports of bluefin as large as 90” to 110” being taken on 18” and 24” spreader bars with green machines working well.&nbsp; Fish are being landed from the Claw to the Dump.” said Dave Henault of Ocean State Tackle.&nbsp;&nbsp;<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><i><br /></i></div>Captain Dave Montihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16831022398407972345noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1441293999360934440.post-67752244131305319592017-08-15T11:20:00.000-07:002017-08-15T11:20:05.127-07:00Fishing with children<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-4_2DzFd44ns/WZM44HPAlXI/AAAAAAAACIk/b3nr7_F2AioPY3MgWCDjsd_4EHxz0GC-QCLcBGAs/s1600/Fishing%2Bwith%2Bchildren%2B-%2BPhoto%2BC.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><i><img border="0" data-original-height="639" data-original-width="841" height="243" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-4_2DzFd44ns/WZM44HPAlXI/AAAAAAAACIk/b3nr7_F2AioPY3MgWCDjsd_4EHxz0GC-QCLcBGAs/s320/Fishing%2Bwith%2Bchildren%2B-%2BPhoto%2BC.jpg" width="320" /></i></a></div><i>&nbsp;Richard Nolan of Burrillville fished Tuesday with his grandchildren Solomon and Lennox Moore.</i><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><o:p></o:p></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3Nv6Cp3oICk/WZM46s5J0dI/AAAAAAAACIo/mUPeeLIz-3oVarGIJWbYx-nYhWtKI-QxACLcBGAs/s1600/Nick%2BElliott%2Bfluke%2B-%2BPhoto%2BB.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1332" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3Nv6Cp3oICk/WZM46s5J0dI/AAAAAAAACIo/mUPeeLIz-3oVarGIJWbYx-nYhWtKI-QxACLcBGAs/s320/Nick%2BElliott%2Bfluke%2B-%2BPhoto%2BB.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>&nbsp;<i>Nick Elliott of Narragansett with a 22” summer flounder he caught while fishing the deep water south of the Newport Bridge.&nbsp;</i><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><o:p></o:p></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-QSW6W-S_gNI/WZM47HiWUCI/AAAAAAAACIs/2-ODvnbsw4kIdSKnmUljkXlgnXUlOc9bgCLcBGAs/s1600/Proud%2Bfisherman%2B-%2BPhoto%2BE.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-QSW6W-S_gNI/WZM47HiWUCI/AAAAAAAACIs/2-ODvnbsw4kIdSKnmUljkXlgnXUlOc9bgCLcBGAs/s1600/Proud%2Bfisherman%2B-%2BPhoto%2BE.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="545" data-original-width="640" height="272" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-QSW6W-S_gNI/WZM47HiWUCI/AAAAAAAACIs/2-ODvnbsw4kIdSKnmUljkXlgnXUlOc9bgCLcBGAs/s320/Proud%2Bfisherman%2B-%2BPhoto%2BE.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>&nbsp;S<i>olomon Moore (four) of Brunswick, Maine with his prized scup.&nbsp;</i><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><o:p></o:p></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-rWniellJ41I/WZM49HD2RsI/AAAAAAAACIw/7fzAlMDViec703Vh7EK-Yxq0xkyQBy-NgCLcBGAs/s1600/Goddard%2BPark%2Bboat%2Bramp%2B-%2BPhoto%2BA.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><i><img border="0" data-original-height="843" data-original-width="1600" height="168" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-rWniellJ41I/WZM49HD2RsI/AAAAAAAACIw/7fzAlMDViec703Vh7EK-Yxq0xkyQBy-NgCLcBGAs/s320/Goddard%2BPark%2Bboat%2Bramp%2B-%2BPhoto%2BA.jpg" width="320" /></i></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><i>The new Goddard Park boat ramp is fully-accessible and features a new deeper water launch site.</i><o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><i><br /></i></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Fishing with children <o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">“This is the most fish I ever caught.” “Scup are great to catch.” “We’re going to make fish tacos when we get home.” These were some of the comments made Tuesday by brothers Lennox (seven) and Solomon Moore (four) as we fished Great Ledge on the north east side of the Jamestown Bridge.&nbsp; The Brunswick, Maine brothers were in Rhode Island with their mother Alexis visiting grandparents and could not wait to try saltwater fishing.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Fishing with children is a lot of fun. No one catches a fish and is sad, particularly children. But to cultivate a child’s interest in fishing you have to tone things down and make it easy for them to catch fish.&nbsp; It does not have to be a large fish; small fish make children enthusiastic too. &nbsp;If children are not catching fish right away you can lose their interest.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Here are some tips for taking children fishing.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">First, the trip should be planned for the children and not the adults taking them.&nbsp; Everyone’s energy on the vessel is geared toward the children to have them catch fish. This means kids only are fishing until they are successful.&nbsp; It’s all about the children.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Where you fish is important, targeting ground fish that are easy to catch like scup and sea bass is important. Most children have the reflexes it takes for a quick hook set to catch scup and sea bass (faster reflexes than most adults I know).&nbsp; Scup tend to be where there is water movement, structure and bait so anchoring up or drifting on a ledge, near a bridge, jetty or some other structure where you have caught fish before is a good idea.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">You should also gear down.&nbsp; Use light weight rods that children can handle.&nbsp; I often use the lightest tackle I have (light weight spinning rods, rated for 8 to 17 pound test line) or small conventional reels and rods for children that have difficulty handling spinning reels.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">I also keep the fishing rig simple.&nbsp; Traditional scup (porgy) or sea bass rigs work well.&nbsp; Two small hooks and a sinker works fine. The bait is simple too, a small piece of squid.&nbsp; Keep things light, I once had a youngster eating cheese and crackers and he asked, “Do you think my cheese will work for bait.” We gave it a try.&nbsp; The decision to use the cheese kept his interest and it worked.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Demonstrating how the rods and reels work is very important.&nbsp; I often do a general introduction at the dock and a second time when we arrive at the first fishing spot. Then it’s one on one with an adult working with each child most of the day.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Children do catch on quickly.&nbsp; At the end of the trip Tuesday, seven year old Lennox was baiting his hook, setting the hook properly, landing fish and taking the fish off the hook.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Teach children how to be responsible anglers.&nbsp; Obey fishing laws, practice catch and release, take only those fish children will eat, and teach them how to be good stewards of the environment.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Lastly, decide if you are going to keep fish for consumption at the beginning of the trip so there is no misunderstanding with the children (some want to bring them home as pets). Encourage children to eat or at least taste the fish once it is cooked at home.&nbsp; Fish are a fresh, local and nutritious source of protein.&nbsp; Something about eating what we catch is part of our DNA as humans.&nbsp; I think this is an important part of the fishing experience. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Where’s the bite?<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Freshwater</b> fishing for trout has slowed as the water has warmed and stocked ponds have been fished out.&nbsp; Manny Macedo of Lucky Bait &amp; Tackle, Warren said, “Customers are catching bass with shiners and a nice pike was caught on Blackstone River in Lincoln, RI.” Neil Hayes of Quaker Lane Bait &amp; Tackle, North Kingstown said, “We weighted in a 6.5 pound largemouth bass that the customer is going to have mounted.” “Most freshwater fishermen are using shiners for largemouth bass.&nbsp; One customer fished the Turner Reservoir (Rumford, RI) and hooked up with some fish there.” said John Littlefield of Archie’s Bait &amp; Tackle, Riverside.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Striped bass.</b>John Littlefield said, “This week we had more schools of pogies (Atlantic menhaden) presenting themselves in the upper Bay with two keepers, a 30” and 31” fish being taken at Pomham Light House.”&nbsp; “One customer caught a 30 inch striped bass at Popasquash Point casting SP Minnows.” said Manny Macedo of Lucky Bait &amp; Tackle, Warren.&nbsp; Mike Cardinal of Misquamicut Bait &amp; Tackle (formerly Cardinal Bait), Westerly, said “Large bass are being caught on the Watch Hill reefs with anglers live lining scup and eels as bait.&nbsp; The bite from the breech ways last week was restricted to school bass.”&nbsp; Neil Hayes of Quaker Lane said, “We have had a good bite with eels off Jamestown and Newport and a great bite with large fish at Block Island.&nbsp; Customers are also trolling umbrella rigs and tube &amp; worm with success.” Angler Eric Appolonia of North Kingstown, RI said, “Last week before the storm my son Alex and his friend boated two nice fish in the 30 to 35 pound range.”&nbsp; “The striped bass bite on the southwest side of Block Island is still very good with anglers catching fish with umbrella rigs as well as eels.&nbsp; We had some 50 pound fish caught last week.” said Matt Conti of Sung Harbor Marina, South Kingstown.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Summer flounder</b>(fluke) fishing has been good at the Jamestown and Newport Bridges.” said Ken Ferrara of Ray’s Bait &amp; Tackle, Warwick.&nbsp; I fished the Newport Bridge area twice this past week and managed a few nice keeper fluke to 23” and several nice sized black sea bass to 19”.&nbsp; “Fluke fishing has slowed a bit along the southern coastal shore with a good bite still occurring south of Fishers Island (New York).” said Mike Cardinal.&nbsp; Fluke fishing around Block Island at Clay Head and the North Rip area has been good as well as at the East Fishing Grounds and the South side in 80 feet of water.&nbsp; As usual with fluke fishing, on any given day you have to fish a few places until you find the fish.&nbsp; Matt Conti of Snug Harbor said, “The bite at the East Fishing Grounds and in the wind farm area has been good with the bite slowing a bit at Clay Head.&nbsp; The bite is still on a bit along the southern coastal shore in about 60 feet of water.”&nbsp; The fluke bite at Clay Head and the East Fishing Grounds Monday was very soft when I fished there, plenty of black sea bass.&nbsp; Perhaps the previous day’s storm gave them lockjaw.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Black sea bass</b>bite has been good at the Newport Bridge with anglers catching them in the Bay, off the coastal shore and at Block Island when they are fluke fishing.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>“Scup</b> fishing has been very good with anglers catching 10 to 15 nice fish each at Colt State park and off the bike path bridge.” said John Littlefield.&nbsp; Mike Cardinal said, “The scup bite is very good off the breech ways.”&nbsp; “With the bad weather this weekend customers have been doing a lot of scup fishing with a good bite at the Mt. Hope Bridge.” said Macedo of Lucky Bait.&nbsp; We caught several nice scup fluke fishing under the Newport Bridge this past weekend. Tuesday I fished the Great Ledge area off Jamestown with brothers Lennox (seven) and Solomon Moore (four) and they caught about twenty fish in two hours.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Bluefish</b> have been heavy at Block Island with anglers catching them when fishing for striped bass.&nbsp; Snapper blue fishing in the bays, coves and harbors improved last week.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"> </div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Offshore</b>fishing.&nbsp; “We had two customers come in with blue fin tuna late Friday.&nbsp; One fish was about 33” and the second which had already been gutted weighed 104 pounds.&nbsp; So anglers are catching some nice fish trolling for them, casting to them and even jigging seems to be working. The bite was south of Tuna Ridge to the Northwest corner of the Dump as well as the Claw area. Customers are also still catching Mako sharks.” said Matt Conti of Snug Harbor Marina.&nbsp;&nbsp;<o:p></o:p></div>Captain Dave Montihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16831022398407972345noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1441293999360934440.post-81286976678296377822017-08-15T11:04:00.001-07:002017-08-15T11:04:43.033-07:00Law targeting fishermen approved by Cranston City Council<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ifYqjAL8Gx4/WZMdtcRubvI/AAAAAAAACII/_c_dooFNuWwZfeG3hWy9BHC12e81VTVlQCLcBGAs/s1600/69.pound%2Bbass%2B-%2BPhoto%2BE%2Bv1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><i><img border="0" data-original-height="810" data-original-width="671" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ifYqjAL8Gx4/WZMdtcRubvI/AAAAAAAACII/_c_dooFNuWwZfeG3hWy9BHC12e81VTVlQCLcBGAs/s320/69.pound%2Bbass%2B-%2BPhoto%2BE%2Bv1.jpg" width="265" /></i></a></div><i>&nbsp;Matt Wechbacker caught this 69 pound striped bass at Block Island with an eel when fishing with Capt. Corey Smith and Kurt Rivard Friday, July 21.</i><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><i><o:p></o:p></i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-lkSiNyZhvJE/WZMdxzL4ptI/AAAAAAAACIM/Us4f6ltcWboR9EDAE6fAJUWmSBoymndwgCLcBGAs/s1600/BI%2Bfluke%2B%2526%2BBSB%2B-%2BPhoto%2BC.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><i><img border="0" data-original-height="1040" data-original-width="1600" height="207" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-lkSiNyZhvJE/WZMdxzL4ptI/AAAAAAAACIM/Us4f6ltcWboR9EDAE6fAJUWmSBoymndwgCLcBGAs/s320/BI%2Bfluke%2B%2526%2BBSB%2B-%2BPhoto%2BC.JPG" width="320" /></i></a></div><i>&nbsp;<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Rich Heffernan, Tom Wood and Larry Audino fished the East Grounds off Block Island for summer flounder and black sea bass Saturday on No Fluke Charters.</span></i><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-COB0T3LNo-0/WZMd3VR5-uI/AAAAAAAACIQ/kdimOrW_CagDmoowQhCAh23zLYdj3qvhgCLcBGAs/s1600/Joe%2BRoth%2BBSB%2B-%2BPhoto%2BB.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1103" data-original-width="1600" height="220" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-COB0T3LNo-0/WZMd3VR5-uI/AAAAAAAACIQ/kdimOrW_CagDmoowQhCAh23zLYdj3qvhgCLcBGAs/s320/Joe%2BRoth%2BBSB%2B-%2BPhoto%2BB.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><i>&nbsp;<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Newport black sea bass bite was good for Joe Roth of Boca Raton, FL who fished the bridge area with success Wednesday. He and wife Linda were fishing with cousin Kevin Fetzer of East Greenwich.</span></i><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-xu3zbH_yFhc/WZMd89tAtII/AAAAAAAACIU/LFg0msHfxBwqRu7DAgLsHd1xUPXstEuvACLcBGAs/s1600/First%2Bfish%2B-%2BPhoto%2BD.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-xu3zbH_yFhc/WZMd89tAtII/AAAAAAAACIU/LFg0msHfxBwqRu7DAgLsHd1xUPXstEuvACLcBGAs/s320/First%2Bfish%2B-%2BPhoto%2BD.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><i>Anthony Gauthier of Washington, DC with a thick summer flounder caught off Ft. Adams, Newport.&nbsp; Anthony and Katie Conway (formerly of North Kingstown) married in Newport last week.</i><o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><i><br /></i></div><div class="Default" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Law targeting fishermen approved by Cranston Council <o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">In one of the first laws of its kind in the State of Rhode Island, the Cranston City Council approved a ‘No Fishing’ ordinance at the end of Ocean Avenue, Cranston at their July 24, 2017 meeting. The primary advocate for the ordinance was the Rhode Island Yacht Club, whose parking lot is adjacent to the public access fishing area.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Councilman John Lanni said that the ordinance was illegal and he was not voting for it. Lanni said, “Citizens are granted the right to access and fishing in our Rhode Island constitution.&nbsp; This ‘No Fishing” ordinance would open the city up for expensive law suits.&nbsp; This is the first time to my knowledge that any city in the state was trying to deny citizens the ability to fish at a public access.”<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Michael Farina, council president, said, “I will not be intimidated by the treat of a law suit.&nbsp; Out attorney says it is not illegal to do this so we are moving forward with it.”<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Councilman Steven Stycos was the only other councilperson opposed to the ‘No Fishing’ ordinance and said, “Fishing is not the problem.&nbsp; We need to enforce the laws we have and propose others such as restricted parking on Ocean Road.&nbsp; However, the Yacht Club has said they want the parking spaces on the street for events they hold.”<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">In a letter dated July 21, 2017 to Council president Michael Farina from Larry Mouradjian, associate director of the Department of Environmental Management (DEM), Mouradjian said, “The City of Cranston does not have the legal authority to ban fishing from the area which has been designated for public access.&nbsp; Based on the Rhode Island Constitution and Rhode General Laws Section 20-1-2, the authority to regulate fish and wildlife has been delegated to DEM.”&nbsp; The letter concluded, “Municipalities have been granted no authority to regulate fishing and the City’s attempt to ban fishing adversely impacts the constitutional rights of Rhode Islanders.” <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Legal Counsel for the city testified (at president Farina’s urging) that they checked with involved state agencies such as the Costal Resource Management Authority and there was nothing wrong with the City ban on fishing at the access point as long as anglers could go down to the beach to fish.&nbsp; Neither legal counsel nor Council president Farina mentioned the DEM letter at the Council meeting.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Michael Jarbeau, Narragansett Barkeeper for Save The Bay testified that the ‘No Fishing’ ordinance was unconstitutional and that Save the Bay was opposed to the ordinance.&nbsp; In a letter to the Council Save The Bay said, “We are sensitive to neighborhood concerns, and the concerns of others who enjoy this public access site, regarding trash, congestion, and private property infringement. However, a fishing ban does nothing to address these concerns directly. Instead, this ordinance takes the unprecedented step of banning an activity so cherished by the state that it is explicitly protected in the Rhode Island Constitution.”<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Richard Hittinger, 1<sup>st</sup> vice president of The Rhode Island Saltwater Anglers Association, testified and said, “Fishing access is a right granted by our State constitution.&nbsp; The ‘No Fishing” ordinance is designed to deny and discourage fisherman, it specially targets fishing.&nbsp; The real problem is trash, parking and congestion.&nbsp; It’s not right to target fishing and fishermen.&nbsp; We are opposed to the ‘No Fishing’ ordinance.”<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Barbara Rubine, president of the Edgewood Waterfront Preservation Association testified that, “Our board objects to the trash and congestion at the end of Ocean Avenue and strongly believes the City needs to enforce ordinances already in place, we are opposed to banning fishing at the Ocean Avenue access point as we believe all should be able to enjoy the coastline.”<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Before the council voted on the ordinance an amendment made by Councilman Michael Favicchio was approved.&nbsp; The spirit of the amendment was to ban fishing on the road but allow it on the beach.&nbsp; The amendment further made it unclear as to where the ‘No Fishing’ line was drawn i.e. at the edge of the road where there is a guardrail, up to the beginning of the sea wall, etc. Councilman Stycos urged clarification in the amendment, but it passed without further alternation.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Save The Bay, the Edgewood Preservation Association and the Rhode Island Saltwater Anglers Association all plan to urge Mayor Fung to veto the ‘No Fishing’ law.&nbsp; The Rhode Island Saltwater Anglers Association has also offered to help the City of Cranston and residents in the area with fishermen outreach.&nbsp; In the past the Association has helped the State and cities with access area signage, the posting of fishing regulations, provided fishing line disposal dispensers and fishermen communication. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="Default" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="Default" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Free clamming workshops<o:p></o:p></span></b></div><div class="Default" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="Default" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management (DEM) announced it is hosting a series of free recreational clamming workshops this summer. The workshops, led by a local shellfisherman, review the history and value of shellfishing in Rhode Island and provide an opportunity for participants to dig for their own clams. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="Default" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="Default" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">People of all ages are encouraged to participate. Space is limited and registration is required. To register, contact Kimberly Sullivan at Kimberly.sullivan@dem.ri.gov. All equipment and materials will be provided. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="Default" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="Default" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">A workshop was held in Bristol earlier this week, the remaining schedule includes workshops on:&nbsp; </span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Friday, August 11<sup>th</sup>, 3:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. at North Kingstown Town Beach, North Kingstown; Tuesday, August 22, 1:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. and Saturday, September 9, 2:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m. at Rocky Point State Park, Warwick.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="Default" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="Default" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Clamming (known locally as quahogging) has a rich history in Rhode Island, as a significant contributor to the state’s commercial fishing industry as well as a great family recreational fishery. More than 28 million quahogs were harvested from Narragansett Bay and local coastal waters last year. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="Default" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="Default" style="line-height: 150%;"><i><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Come Clam With Me </span></i><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">workshops are sponsored by DEM’s Aquatic Resource Education (ARE) program. ARE provides a host of recreational fishing opportunities for the public – as well as marine science programming for educators.&nbsp; </span><span style="color: windowtext; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">For more information on ARE programs and events, visit www.dem.ri.gov/are. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Party boat fishing<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Every wonder how to select a party fishing boat to go out on and just wish you knew which one was good and best for you.&nbsp; You can learn how to select a party boat this Monday, July 31<sup>st</sup>, 7:00 p.m. at the Rhode Island Saltwater Anglers Association’s (RISAA) Party Boat Seminar at the West Warwick Elks Lodge.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Dianne Valerien will be quest speaker.&nbsp; Dianne has fished for 40 years and worked on party boats for the past 20 years fishing for cod, black sea bass, summer flounder, scup tautog and striped bass.&nbsp; &nbsp;Valerien said, “Fishing on a party boat is a great way to get out fishing on a boat.&nbsp; It’s affordable and you can go it alone or fish with family and friends.”<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Learn what to look for when choosing a party boat, differences in boat operations as well as fishing gear and techniques to employ when fishing on a party board.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"> </div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Non-members are requested to make a $10 donation to the RISAA Scholarship Fund, members attend free. The Elks Lodge is at 60 Clyde Street, West Warwick.&nbsp; Dinner between 5:30 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. sold separately.&nbsp;&nbsp;<o:p></o:p></div>Captain Dave Montihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16831022398407972345noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1441293999360934440.post-24634896595601213232017-07-21T04:07:00.000-07:002017-07-21T04:07:46.785-07:00Commission overruled by Secretary of Commerce<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zDfo_TClwHE/WXHax6R_zHI/AAAAAAAACHc/m62neJAK4IcXO-irxEduWNCz9UP_h7G4wCLcBGAs/s1600/DR%2Bfluke%2B-%2BPhoto%2BA.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zDfo_TClwHE/WXHax6R_zHI/AAAAAAAACHc/m62neJAK4IcXO-irxEduWNCz9UP_h7G4wCLcBGAs/s320/DR%2Bfluke%2B-%2BPhoto%2BA.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><i>David Rea with his first ever summer flounder (a nice 22” fluke) caught south of Dutch Island last Saturday.</i><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><o:p></o:p></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-4koKLhLWNZ8/WXHa0z84vMI/AAAAAAAACHg/FKT30aOGRCIx_Pjl6N6z2eMS97j0y0g4wCLcBGAs/s1600/TL%2Bwith%2Bfluke%2Blimit%2B-%2BPhoto%2BB.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="900" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-4koKLhLWNZ8/WXHa0z84vMI/AAAAAAAACHg/FKT30aOGRCIx_Pjl6N6z2eMS97j0y0g4wCLcBGAs/s320/TL%2Bwith%2Bfluke%2Blimit%2B-%2BPhoto%2BB.jpg" width="180" /></a></div><i>&nbsp;Tom Lombardi of Charlestown with his limit of fluke (totally 30 pounds) he caught last weekend on the Frances Fleet.</i><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><o:p></o:p></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-lZY-4qUJojA/WXHa3JiZ5QI/AAAAAAAACHk/dxMHXQSwtPsgwTOFOEv0Pey5xvTX7Z-kgCLcBGAs/s1600/CS%2Bbass%2B-%2BPhoto%2BD.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1593" data-original-width="1195" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-lZY-4qUJojA/WXHa3JiZ5QI/AAAAAAAACHk/dxMHXQSwtPsgwTOFOEv0Pey5xvTX7Z-kgCLcBGAs/s320/CS%2Bbass%2B-%2BPhoto%2BD.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><i>Cameron Sears of Seekonk (13 years old) with a striped bass he caught at the North Rip casting soft plastics when fishing with his father and Jack Leyden.&nbsp;</i></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 12.0pt;"><b>Commission overruled by Secretary of Commerce<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 12.0pt;">Wilbur Ross, Secretary of Commerce, notified the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) that he has found the State of New Jersey to be in compliance with the new Summer Flounder Fishery Management Plan. &nbsp;The decision circumvents the work of the Commission that provides coastwide management of summer flounder (fluke) in our area.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 12.0pt;">Secretary Ross said in a letter to the Commission “New Jersey makes a compelling argument that the measures it implemented this year, despite increasing catch above the harvest target, will likely reduce total summer flounder mortality in New Jersey waters to a level consistent with the overall conservation objective for the recreational fishery.”<o:p></o:p></div><div class="aolmailmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: .25in; margin-top: 0in;"><br /></div><div class="aolmailmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: .25in; margin-top: 0in;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Calibri&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%;">In a press release last week, the ASMFC said, “Based on the latest stock assessment information, summer flounder is currently experiencing overfishing. Spawning stock biomass has been declining since 2010 and is just 16% above the threshold.&nbsp; If the stock falls below the biomass threshold, the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act requires the Council to initiate a rebuilding program, which could require more restrictive management</span><span style="font-family: &quot;Calibri&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;;"> measures. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="aolmailmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: .25in; margin-top: 0in;"><br /></div><div class="aolmailmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: .25in; margin-top: 0in;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Calibri&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%;">The Magnuson-Stevens Act puts fish first in this nation to ensure that fish stocks are rebuilt.&nbsp; Having more than 40 fish stocks successfully rebuilt proves the fish first policy works. &nbsp;When decisions – such as the Secretary of Commerce’s decision allowing New Jersey to make their own summer flounder regulations – are allowed, they put the interests of individual states first.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="aolmailmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: .25in; margin-top: 0in;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">This is a recipe for disaster.&nbsp; States are subject to local political pressure to put local interests first, and the fish will take a back seat.&nbsp; The big concern with last week’s decision is that other states will decide to fish the way they want to regardless of what’s best for the fish, and we could end up with total chaos.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 12.0pt;"><b>We need to be advocates for public access <o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 12.0pt;">On Thursday, July 13<sup>th </sup>the City of Cranston Ordinance Committee passed an ordinance to eliminate fishing at the Ocean Avenue, Cranston public access point.&nbsp; The ‘No Fishing” ordnance will now go before the City Council for final approval on July 24.&nbsp; The ordinance in part read, “There shall be no fishing at the public access point where Ocean Avenue meets the shoreline at any time”. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 12.0pt;">The primary advocate for the ordinance was the Rhode Island Yacht Club, whose parking lot is adjacent to the public access fishing area.&nbsp; The Yacht Club commodore (chief volunteer officer), past commodores and some property owners in the area said “Why should we be subject to people fishing there adding congestion to the end of the street”, “The trash in the area is terrible.”, “I do not like walking down to the water with all those lines in the water.”, “We work hard and deserve to go to our boats without this hassle”, said a Yacht Club member.</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 12.0pt;">Some neighbors as well as Councilpersons Steven Stycos and John Lanni did not support the ‘No Fishing’ ordinance saying if approved the ordinance would deprive the people of Cranston and the State of RI of public access to the Bay to fish which is a constitutional right. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 12.0pt;">Councilman Kenneth Hopkins, vice-chair of the Ordinance Committee read portions of the Rhode Island Constitution online out loud to the committee saying “We can do this, it’s not illegal, it says we have a right to regulate the resource.” <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 12.0pt;">The Edgewood Waterfront Preservation Association testified that they did not support the ‘No Fishing’ ordinance, nor did they support the trash or conduct of some of the people at the end of Ocean Road.&nbsp; They felt that banning fishing is not the solution.&nbsp; “One more ordinance is not going to help.” said Barbara Rubine, EWPA president. “We need a long term solution.&nbsp; Maybe a fishing pier should be built somewhere else in the City.” <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 12.0pt;">I visited the Ocean Avenue site Tuesday afternoon, July 11 at 2:30 p.m.&nbsp; There were four people fishing there, no trash was on the ground and a trash bag was tied to the fence which looked like it had been placed there by the fishermen. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 12.0pt;">Councilman Stycos said that the City has done nothing to address the challenge but the first step might be placing trash containers and emptying them regularly at the site as they presently do at Stillhouse Cove a short walk away.&nbsp; Stycos said, “The intent of the ordinance is to prohibit fishermen from being at the access point, I do not know how you can single out a group like this.”<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 12.0pt;">Councilman Stycos said “Seven years ago the Rhode Island Yacht Club asked me to address the challenge, I suggested we eliminate parking on portions of Ocean Road to help address the congestion issue, however, the Yacht Club did not like that solution because members (and those attending events at the Yacht club) park on the street.”&nbsp; Councilman Stycos said, “Initially the Yacht Club asked that the City of Cranston deed the public access point over to the Yacht Club, but I told them that this was not likely going to happen.” <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 12.0pt;">As fishermen and access advocates, we need to be diligent about protecting public access points on lakes, ponds, coves, rivers, bays and the Atlantic Ocean.&nbsp; City Council advisors at the meeting said there were only three other fishing access point locations in the City of Cranston. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 12.0pt;">The ‘No Fishing’ ordinance is scheduled to go before the City Council at their July 24<sup>th</sup> meeting.&nbsp; The ‘No Fishing’ ordinance has a lot of political horsepower behind it has the sponsor of the ordinance is City Council president, Michael Farina and it has the support of the Ordinance Committee.&nbsp; The City Council meeting is open to the public.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 12.0pt;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Where’s the bite?<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="aolmailmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: &quot;Calibri&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%;">“Freshwater </span></b><span style="font-family: &quot;Calibri&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%;">fishing bass fishing is good.&nbsp; Anglers are using shiners and soft plastics with success.&nbsp; The surprising thing is that the trout bite is still pretty good at Wood River.&nbsp; Customers are even catching some trout in local ponds that were stocked by DEM.&nbsp; This is unusual for this time of year.” said Dave Henault of Ocean State Tackle, Providence.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="aolmailmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><br /></div><div class="aolmailmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: &quot;Calibri&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Striped bass.</span></b><span style="font-family: &quot;Calibri&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%;"> Angler Jack Leyden of North Kingstown fished the Block Island North Rip last week and said the striped bass were on the surface and they landed multiple bass casting black Slug-Go lures, even picked up a few trolling the Slug-Go.&nbsp; “The bass were thick with a lot of bait, birds feeding too.”&nbsp; Ken Landry of Ray’s Bait &amp; Tackle said, “Last week we caught bass to 52 pounds fishing the southwest side of Block Island at night using eels.”&nbsp; Angler Mike Swain said, “We caught multiple striped bass Sunday at the North Rip casting soft plastics as the bass were high in the water column feeding.”&nbsp; Dave Henault of Ocean State Tackle, said, “The bass bite on the southwest side of Block Island is good.&nbsp; Customers are catching some very large fish there.”<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="aolmailmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><br /></div><div class="aolmailmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: &quot;Calibri&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Summer flounder (fluke)</span></b><span style="font-family: &quot;Calibri&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%;"> fishing along the southern coastal shore and Block Island is hot. Angler Jack Leyden said he, Steve Sears and children fished the Block Island North Rip for fluke and limited out last Thursday. “The rip was loaded with sand eels and the fluke were there.” said Leyden.&nbsp; Fishing the Bay, including the lower Bay around the Newport and Jamestown Bridges is slow.&nbsp; Anglers are catching some very nice fish but the summer flounder bite is a very slow pick. Congratulations to Dave Rea of Wickford &nbsp;for landing his first keeper fluke, a nice 22” fish, caught Saturday in the trench just south of Dutch Island when fishing on No Fluke Charters.&nbsp; Capt. Frank Blount of the Francis Fleet said, “Fluke fishing was great this week.&nbsp; We had</span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 150%;"> four excellent days of fishing. Monday saw a near full boat limit close to the coastal shore while Thursday through Saturday fishing waters around Block Island paid big dividends. On Thursday's trip we had three extraordinary fluke taken between 11 and 13 pounds. Customer Tom Lombardi from Charlestown had an easy limit catch of fluke that totaled just over 30 pounds in combined weight on Saturday. Buck tail jigs of various kinds and hi lo Spro jigs set along with gulp seemed to do really well with the big fish this past week.”&nbsp;<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="aolmailmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"> </div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Offshore </b>fishing is starting to explode with bluefin and yellowfin tuna starting to be caught. Off shore fishermen Dick Pastore said on the RISAA blog Saturday, “Sharked at the horns in flat seas – 71 degree water. No drift. Two lazy blue sharks milled around but didn’t t take the mackerel baits which was a blessing. We then moved to the South West Ledge which was alive with bait and 74 degree water. Boils of large blue fish and strippers below. Diamond jigs and deadly dicks worked well. Tons of BSB and large scup on deadly dicks. Birds (shear waters) were working the boils.” <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><i><br /></i></div>Captain Dave Montihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16831022398407972345noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1441293999360934440.post-91359771115711027302017-07-21T03:41:00.000-07:002017-07-21T03:41:45.726-07:00Local tournaments top fishing news<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-zw6C0c0A7bw/WXHXe9-HL4I/AAAAAAAACHE/uA1xHdDgUNAcdHn_smfxkxBgOIKaOLpKwCLcBGAs/s1600/Shark%2BTournament%2B-%2BPhoto%2BA.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="597" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-zw6C0c0A7bw/WXHXe9-HL4I/AAAAAAAACHE/uA1xHdDgUNAcdHn_smfxkxBgOIKaOLpKwCLcBGAs/s320/Shark%2BTournament%2B-%2BPhoto%2BA.jpg" width="238" /></a></div><i>&nbsp;The crew of the sport fishing vessel ‘Fortuna’ from East Greenwich took 1<sup>st</sup> place in this weekend’s Snug Harbor Marina shark tournament with a 330 pound mako.&nbsp; Bryan Jay was on the rod when the fish hit.</i><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><o:p></o:p></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-KbU117i2blw/WXHXiRfzb9I/AAAAAAAACHI/uP71JMvFb4srPcBcKIm77UNlu8qqPOK_QCLcBGAs/s1600/BM%2B20.5%2Bpound%2Bbluefish%2B-%2BPhoto%2BB%2B%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="687" data-original-width="1024" height="214" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-KbU117i2blw/WXHXiRfzb9I/AAAAAAAACHI/uP71JMvFb4srPcBcKIm77UNlu8qqPOK_QCLcBGAs/s320/BM%2B20.5%2Bpound%2Bbluefish%2B-%2BPhoto%2BB%2B%25282%2529.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><i>&nbsp;Bob Matterson with the monster 20.5 pound bluefish he caught south of the Jamestown Bridge.&nbsp; The State of RI record is 26 pounds, set by D. Deziel of Woonsocket in 1981.</i><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><o:p></o:p></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-1gItZawVc3Y/WXHXrXtWp_I/AAAAAAAACHM/BrCj0Dvemf8KDbuSYgsgM4x-NVwbe0amQCLcBGAs/s1600/Fluke%2Bnorth%2Bof%2BJames.%2BBridge%2B-%2BPhoto%2BC.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1462" data-original-width="1600" height="292" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-1gItZawVc3Y/WXHXrXtWp_I/AAAAAAAACHM/BrCj0Dvemf8KDbuSYgsgM4x-NVwbe0amQCLcBGAs/s320/Fluke%2Bnorth%2Bof%2BJames.%2BBridge%2B-%2BPhoto%2BC.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><i>&nbsp;Steve Brustein of Portland, Maine with the 23” fluke he caught Saturday just north of the Newport Bridge.</i><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><o:p></o:p></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-8ULz_Ae9SVI/WXHXvJP696I/AAAAAAAACHQ/AHCdMPvPNJsMYYa1R-9sYIPXq73cqpdiwCLcBGAs/s1600/BI%2Bsurface%2Blure%2Bbass%2B-%2BPhoto%2BE.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="459" data-original-width="492" height="298" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-8ULz_Ae9SVI/WXHXvJP696I/AAAAAAAACHQ/AHCdMPvPNJsMYYa1R-9sYIPXq73cqpdiwCLcBGAs/s320/BI%2Bsurface%2Blure%2Bbass%2B-%2BPhoto%2BE.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><i>John Migliori with a striped bass he caught at dawn at Block Island.&nbsp; “The bass exploded on the surface lure, its’s one of my favorite ways to catch bass.”</i><o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Local tournaments top fishing news<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><i>‘Fortuna’ </i></b><b>takes Snug Harbor Tournament with 330 pound mako<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">The sport fishing vessel <i>‘Fortuna’</i>from East Greenwich, RI captained by Mike Beland landed a 330 pound mako shark to take first place in Snug Harbor Marina’s Shark Tournament this past weekend. Bryan Jay was on the rod when the fish hit.&nbsp;&nbsp; Michaela Hastings on ‘Rangeley’ took second place with a 235 pound mako.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Matt Conti of Snug Harbor Marina said, “We had a great turnout with 49 vessels participating, two more than last year.” &nbsp;&nbsp;The tournament took place July 8<sup>th</sup>and 9<sup>th</sup> and concluded at 5:00 p.m. on Sunday.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">Proceeds from the tournament go the Rhode Island Saltwater Anglers Association and the Recreational Fishing Alliance. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Fishing for a Cause big success<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 12.0pt;">The 7<sup>th</sup> annual Fishing for A Cause tournament, fundraiser and dinner raised nearly $200,000 to benefit children and families of the Schwartz Center, Meeting Street’s Dartmouth, MA campus.&nbsp; The sold-out annual event which took place June 23<sup>rd</sup> and 24<sup>th</sup> featured more than 100 anglers and over 350 guests at the seaside dinner, making it the largest annual fundraiser for The Schwartz Center.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 12.0pt;">“Our 7th Tournament and Seaside Dinner surpassed all expectations thanks to our incredible supporters and our Fishing Committee,” said Meeting Street President John M. Kelly.&nbsp; “The incredible spirit of giving and dedication to our work and to our children is truly humbling.”<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 12.0pt;">Upon the culmination of the tournament participants enjoyed a seaside dinner emceed by comedian Lenny Clarke. The dinner celebrated tournament participants, dedicated supporters and the children and families that will benefit from the proceeds.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 12.0pt;">This year’s first place 48”striped bass was caught by Mike Marcello of Portsmouth, RI; first place blue fish went to Richard Bellizzi of Dartmouth, MA with a 31.50" fish; and first place summer flounder (fluke) went to Dan Abraham of Portsmouth, RI with a 22.25” fish.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Big 3 Fishing Tournament <o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">The Big 3 Fishing Tournament is scheduled to take place today, Friday, July 14 at the Wychmere Beach Club in Harwich, MA.&nbsp; Since it started three years ago the tournament has raised more than $1-million for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Cape Cod and the Islands.&nbsp; Forty boats are expected to participate this year with over 300 people attending the dinner.&nbsp; Watch for tournament winners next week.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Concerned about mercury in fish?<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">The&nbsp;<a href="http://mercury2017.com/" target="_blank"><span style="color: black;">13th International Conference on Mercury as a Global Pollutant</span></a>&nbsp;(ICMGP 2017) will be held in Providence this Sunday, July 16 through Friday, July 21.&nbsp;<span style="background: white;">Over 1,000 people from 57 countries are registered to attend</span>.<span style="background: white;">&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="background: white;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Ecotoxicologist&nbsp;<a href="http://biology.dartmouth.edu/people/celia-y-chen" target="_blank"><span style="color: #954f72;">Celia Chen</span></a>, who is the research translation core leader for the&nbsp;<a href="http://www.dartmouth.edu/~toxmetal/index.html" target="_blank"><span style="color: #954f72;">Dartmouth Toxic Metals Superfund Research Program</span></a>,&nbsp;and a research professor of biological sciences at Dartmouth College, serves as a co-chair of&nbsp;the conference.&nbsp;<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="aolmailmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 150%;">Chen is a widely-recognized expert on the&nbsp;fate and effects of metal contaminants in aquatic food webs both in freshwater and estuarine ecosystems. She’ll be leading one of the workshops to be held on July 16 as part of the conference. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="aolmailmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><br /></div><div class="aolmailmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 150%;">Visit the conference website at <a href="http://mercury2017.com/">http://mercury2017.com</a>&nbsp; for details and the latest on mercury as it relates to aquatic ecosystems and fish contamination. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="aolmailmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Where’s the bite?<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Striped bass</b> fishing continues to heat up on Block Island.&nbsp; Angler Eric Appolonia (and family) from North Kingstown caught striped bass to 40 pounds using umbrella rigs and eels at the Southwest Ledge last week.&nbsp; We fished Sunday too and caught three keepers to 32 pounds on eels.” Matt Conti of Snug Harbor Marina, South Kingstown said, “Bass fishing with eels are working on the Southwest Ledge with fish in the forty pound range being caught at night and during the day.” Manny Macedo of Lucky Bait &amp; Tackle, Warren said, “For the most part bass have left the Bay we had a few fish caught at Ohio Ledge on eels but all the action is at Block Island.&nbsp; The largest Block Island fish we weighed in this week was 50.5 pounds.”&nbsp; Mike Wade of Watch Hill Outfitters, Westerly said, “Striped bass fishing has exploded here.&nbsp; A customer jigging for black sea bass caught a 37 pound fish and anglers have been catching 40 to 45 pound fish using eels at Watch Hill and Sugar reefs.” Capt. Frank Blount of the Frances Fleet reports good evening striped bass trips last week with boats limiting out, many anglers caught fish in the 30 and 40 pound range.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Summer flounder (fluke) </b>fishing was good last week at Block Island with fish being taken on the North and west sides of the Island, the windfarm area on the south and at the East Fishing Grounds 3.5 miles east of the Island.&nbsp; The biggest challenge was dog fish… avoid them and your will likely hook up with fluke.&nbsp; This weekend Steve Brustein and Mike Weaver found fluke to 23” just north of the Jamestown Bridge on No Fluke Charters.&nbsp; Ken Ferrara of Ray’s Bait &amp; Tackle, Warwick said, “Anglers are catching keeper fluke both in the Newport and Jamestown Bridge areas.&nbsp; Most of the activity is happening south of the Bridges.” “Customers are landing fish in the Sakonnet River area.” said Manny Macedo of Lucky Bait &amp; Tackle. “The fluke have been in lower water this year… large fish are being caught in 28 to 35 feet of water close to shore at Misquamicut and along the coastal shore.&nbsp; Fluke fishing is excellent on the south side of Long Island.” said Mike Wake of Watch Hill Outfitters. Capt. Frank Blount of the Francis Fleet said, “We had a good week of fluke fishing. <span style="background: white; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">There were a few handfuls of limit catches on most days; many saw limit catches of sea bass that were generally of very good size. We had at least three fish this week that threatened or hit the 10 pound mark and a bunch of others in the 8-9 pound range.” Matt Conti of Sung Harbor Marina said, “From the Center Wall of the Harbor of Refuge to Charlestown anglers are catching fluke in 55 to 65 feet of water.&nbsp; They are catching shorts and keepers with black sea bass filling in nicely.”<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="background: white; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><span style="background: white; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">Scup</span></b><span style="background: white; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"> fishing is strong in the Bay.&nbsp; Many Macedo said, “The scup are very large.&nbsp; Some are 17 and 18” and are being caught from shore at Colt State Park and in the Warren River as well as off Newport.&nbsp; Mike Wade of Watch Hill Outfitters said, “Scup fishing from shore on jetties and breachways has been very good, the fish are getting larger every year.”<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="background: white; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"> </div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><span style="background: white; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">Offshore</span></b><span style="background: white; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"> fishing is starting to take off. “One of the boats fishing our Shark Tournament this weekend (see story above) caught a 139 pound bluefin tuna and others in the Tournament caught bluefin in the 60” range.&nbsp; Anyplace at the 30 fathom line from the Horns to South of Martha’s Vineyard is filled with bait, whales and birds.&nbsp; Anglers fishing east of the Fingers, at Tuna Ridge and a number of other locations are hooking up.”</span><o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><i><br /></i></div>Captain Dave Montihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16831022398407972345noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1441293999360934440.post-79306375632580862542017-07-02T03:48:00.001-07:002017-07-02T03:48:54.677-07:00Marine Sanctuaries/Monuments on chopping block<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UDxRffzqagk/WVjNIzR0HzI/AAAAAAAACGw/V7npGkJtG_cewb2C7ke3O_zTJI6hNhySQCLcBGAs/s1600/Bay%2BBSB%2B-%2BPhoto%2BA.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><i><img border="0" data-original-height="1068" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UDxRffzqagk/WVjNIzR0HzI/AAAAAAAACGw/V7npGkJtG_cewb2C7ke3O_zTJI6hNhySQCLcBGAs/s320/Bay%2BBSB%2B-%2BPhoto%2BA.JPG" width="320" /></i></a></div><i>&nbsp;<span style="font-size: 10pt;">Cory Bourassa of Cumberland caught this back sea bass Sunday under the Newport Bridge.</span><span style="font-size: 10pt;">&nbsp; </span><span style="font-size: 10pt;">Minimum size is 15”with a three fish/person/day limit.</span></i><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 150%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-E5znAlj7YUc/WVjNODiN7hI/AAAAAAAACG0/lMamNwrF9WoJut29rm8oxcI9bDwGQlFPQCLcBGAs/s1600/Fishing%2BCamp%2B-%2BPhoto%2BA.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1068" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-E5znAlj7YUc/WVjNODiN7hI/AAAAAAAACG0/lMamNwrF9WoJut29rm8oxcI9bDwGQlFPQCLcBGAs/s320/Fishing%2BCamp%2B-%2BPhoto%2BA.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><i>Owen Clark and Aiden Beltrami (both 8) present their fish drawing at the RI Saltwater Anglers Association Fishing Camp held at Rocky Point State Park with DEM and US Fish &amp; Wildlife as partners.</i><o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><i><br /></i></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Where’s the bite</b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>“The striped bass</b> bite on the southwest side of Block Island continues to be spotty, however, the fish being taken are large in the mid 40 pound range.” said Matt Conti of Snug Harbor Marina.&nbsp; “We still have plenty of school bass around but things have slowed down in Mt. Hope and Narragansett Bays or keepers.&nbsp; Things are better on Block Island with some big fish being caught there and off Westport.” said Manny Macedo of Lucky Bait &amp; Tackle, Warren.&nbsp; Jose Estrava, an associate at Ocean State Bait &amp; Tackle, Providence caught a 35 pound bass at the Cape Cod Cannel using a three once pencil lure.&nbsp; “Bass are being caught in the lower River at the Day Marker, off Green Island and areas between Fields Point and Conimicut Light.&nbsp; The bite off Newport has been good too with anglers landing fish using plugs, trolling and using eels from shore. Top performing plugs for striped bass this year include the two once dotters by Yo-Zuri.” said Dave Henault of Ocean State.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>"Summer Flounder and black sea bass </b>bite has been good in the Warwick Neck area.” said Dave Henault of Ocean State. “Fluke fishing at the Island has been good as well as along the coastal shore from Narragansett to East Matunuck.” said Capt. Tom Pelletier of Quaker Lane Bait &amp; Tackle, North Kingstown.&nbsp; Matt Conti of Snug Harbor Marina said, “Fluke fishing has been better along the coast than around Block Island with fish being caught from Narragansett to Charlestown with black sea bass being caught in rocky areas (off Pt. Judith Light).&nbsp; Bigger summer flounder are being caught at the East Grounds… either you find the fluke there or a log of dog fish.&nbsp; It is hit or miss.&nbsp; But the fluke are bigger there.”&nbsp; Manny Macedo of Lucky Bait said “The fluke bite is pretty good at the mouth of the Sakonnet, off Newport with some nice fish being caught under the Mt. Hope Bridge. Some very large black sea bass have been caught around Block Island.”<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>&nbsp;“Scup</b> fishing is very good with some very large fish&nbsp; in the 13” to 17” range being caught at the Mt. Hope Bridge (both sides), Fog Island as well as in the Newport area.” said Manny Macedo.&nbsp; “The scup bite off Warwick Neck was good Thursday as 50 participants of the RI Saltwater Anglers Association fishing camp fished from 15 volunteer vessels, scup to 15” were caught that day.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Squid fishing</b> has been spotty; however, a good bite was reported at Ft. Wetherill, Jamestown this week.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Offshore fishing</b> is just starting to pick up.&nbsp; Matt Conti of Snug Harbor Marina said, “Some bluefin tuna was caught at the Horns this week with small yellow fin caught at Atlantis.&nbsp; We had a sword fish caught this week with blue sharks active at Tuna Ridge and a 200 plus pond mako shark caught by the vessel Big Game at the Horns.&nbsp; We hope for a busy week with the Snug Harbor Shark Tournament starting next weekend.”<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Freshwater fishing</b> for trout has slowed a great deal as the water has warmed and stocked ponds are being depleted. &nbsp;However the largemouth bass bite remains strong with smaller fish being taken.&nbsp; The Brickyard Pond in Barrington is getting weedy but yielding some nice Carp.” said Manny Macedo of Lucky Bait.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px;"><b>Marine Sanctuaries and Monuments on chopping block</b><o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px;">In a media advisory last week the National Oceanic &amp; Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) said they are soliciting public comment on National Marine Sanctuaries and Monuments designated or expanded since 2007 to determine if they should exist or be reduced.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px;">President Trump’s Offshore Energy Strategy outlined in his May Executive Order has ordered the Secretary of Commerce through NOAA to review if national monuments and sanctuaries present “lost opportunity” with regard to potential energy and mineral exploration and production.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px;">Many in the fishing community are split about National Monuments.&nbsp;&nbsp;Some believe, as the President does, that profits and jobs should come first.&nbsp;&nbsp;However, a large part of the fishing and conservation communities believe it should be the environment and fish that should be first.&nbsp;&nbsp;Many believe that National Marine Sanctuaries and Marine Monuments serve as a sanctuary and spawning grounds for a variety of sea life and fish and should be left untouched by development.</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px;"><o:p></o:p>For information on National Marine Monuments and Sanctuaries visit NOAA Fisheries website at&nbsp;<a href="http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/">http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/</a>&nbsp;.</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div>Captain Dave Montihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16831022398407972345noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1441293999360934440.post-7452357997316679512017-07-02T03:37:00.000-07:002017-07-02T03:37:35.443-07:00Anglers teach them the basics<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-BzDzk4NZ64s/WVjLYBC6HEI/AAAAAAAACGk/iRNzRfAK08IKdykn8dAffeTU_UzXT4evQCLcBGAs/s1600/Lemay%2Bfluke%2B-%2BPhoto%2BA.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1012" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-BzDzk4NZ64s/WVjLYBC6HEI/AAAAAAAACGk/iRNzRfAK08IKdykn8dAffeTU_UzXT4evQCLcBGAs/s320/Lemay%2Bfluke%2B-%2BPhoto%2BA.jpg" width="202" /></a></div><i>&nbsp;<span style="font-size: 10pt;">Kevin Ward of Bristol, CT caught this 52 pound striped bass trolling an umbrella frame on the south side of Block Island on </span><span style="font-size: 10pt;">Priority Too Charters</span><span style="font-size: 10pt;"> out of Pt. Judith.</span></i><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 150%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-SDonzNFTxFA/WVjLb4Q8uYI/AAAAAAAACGo/COEjBpiD7-g7a8LcY7V6Ax06YylOR7d9ACLcBGAs/s1600/Dirck%2BWestervelt%2Bfluke%2B-%2BPhot%2BC.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1421" data-original-width="1600" height="284" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-SDonzNFTxFA/WVjLb4Q8uYI/AAAAAAAACGo/COEjBpiD7-g7a8LcY7V6Ax06YylOR7d9ACLcBGAs/s320/Dirck%2BWestervelt%2Bfluke%2B-%2BPhot%2BC.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 150%;"><i>Dirck Westervelt of North Kingstown caught this summer flounder under the Newport Bridge on an incoming tide Wednesday on No Fluke Fishing Charters.</i><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Anglers teach them the basics<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">The Rhode Island Saltwater Anglers Association (RISAA) will hold two youth fishing events this week.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">The 19<sup>th</sup> Annual Take-a-Kid Fishing event will take place in Greenwich Bay this Saturday from 9:00 a.m. to 12 noon. About 150 children from over a dozen youth organizations including the Boys and Girls Clubs, the Providence Recreation Department and group homes will be treated to a morning of fishing. Over 100 volunteers and 50 volunteer vessels will take children fishing followed by a cookout at Brewers Cowesett Marina, the event host marina.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Also this week RISAA will hold its second Youth Fishing Camp at Rocky Point State Park.&nbsp; The camp runs Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday and is sponsored by RISAA, the RI Department of Environmental Management and U.S. Fish &amp; Wildlife.&nbsp; Steve Medeiros, president of RISSA said, “Fifty campers will learn fishing basics, fish biology and identification, conservation, and safety.&nbsp; Participants will also learn how to fish from shore and a boat.&nbsp; Shore fishing instruction will take place at Rocky Point Beach and boat fishing on volunteer vessels will occur in the waters off Warwick Neck and in Greenwich Bay. This year we added a day of summer flounder (fluke) fishing on the Seven B’s Party Boat out of Pt. Judith.”<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">There is no fee for participants and the camp is now full and enrollment closed. Camp is scheduled to kick off Tuesday at 8:30 a.m. with a symbolic first cast from the shore of Rocky Point Beach with a group of camp participants; Janet Coit, DEM director; Warwick Mayor Scott Avedisian; and Steve Medeiros, RISAA president.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Trout Unlimited seminar</b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">The Narragansett Chapter of Trout Unlimited (TU225) will host a seminar titled “Building a community around conservation &amp; fishing” on Wednesday, June 28<sup>th</sup> after a brief 6:00 p.m. meeting.&nbsp; The seminar will be held at the Arcadia Management Area Check Station, Rt. 165, (Ten Rod Road), at Wood River, Exeter, RI.&nbsp; The meeting will be preceded by a 5:00 p.m. cook-out, the public is invited to attend.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Speaker Jeff Yates, Trout Unlimited’ s national Director of Volunteer Operations , will be the guest speaker. He is an author and guide, whose first book, Fly Fishing Fairfield County: Secrets of Suburban Streams was published in 2011. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">For information contact Glenn Place at 1-401-225-7712 or <a href="mailto:TU225President@gmail.com"><span style="color: #0563c1;">TU225President@gmail.com</span></a> .<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Angler surveys, light tackle and fly fishing seminar<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">The Rhode Island Saltwater Anglers Association (RISAA) will hold a light tackle &amp; fly fishing for striped bass seminar with Joe Gugino and a second topic on the benefits of angler surveys and how they help recreational anglers by Michal Bucko of the RI Depart of Environmental Management (DEM).<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Gugino is an accomplished kayak fisherman who prefers fly fishing and topwater fishing for striped bass.&nbsp; Mike Bucko leads Rhode Island’s team of angler surveyors.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">The public is invited to attend the seminar with a $10 donation to the RISAA scholarship fund.&nbsp; Optional dinner starting at 5:30 p.m., at the West Warwick Elks, 60 Clyde Street, West Warwick, RI.&nbsp; Visit <a href="http://www.risaa.org/">www.risaa.org</a>for details.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Where’s the bite<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div style="line-height: 150%;"><b><span style="font-family: &quot;Calibri&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Freshwater</span></b><span style="font-family: &quot;Calibri&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%;">bite slowed this week with anglers catching large and small mouth bass as well as trout but not in the numbers they had been catching the earlier in the month.&nbsp; Angler Harold Hemberger said, “Have fished both Waterman Lake&nbsp;and Stump Pond in Smithfield in the past two days.&nbsp; I caught a half dozen bass - all in the one pound range.&nbsp;.nothing great but plenty of fun.&nbsp; Bait was a natural color rubber worm fished by letting it drop to the bottom and then up and down on the retrieve.”&nbsp; “Lincoln Woods and Echo Lake, Barrington is still yielding bass although not many large fish have been caught lately.” said John Littlefield of Archie’s Bait &amp; Tackle.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Calibri&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Striped bass fishing </b>has been mixed. Capt. Rick Bellavance of the RI Party &amp; Charter Boat Association (RIPCBA) said, “Striped bass fishing at Block Island is very good. All sizes from 25 inch school bass to a few 50 plus pounders were landed by charter boats this past week.&nbsp; Kevin Ward of Bristol, CT caught a 52 pound striped bass trolling an umbrella rig off Block Island’s south side on my boat <i>(Priority Too Charters</i>).”&nbsp; Elisa Cahill of Snug Harbor Marina, South Kingstown said, “Capt. Louis DeFusco of Hot Reels boated a fish in the high forty pound range and Monday and we weighed in a fifty pound fish from a commercial fisherman.”&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; John Littlefield of Archie’s Bait &amp; Tackle, Riverside said, “The pogies are still thick in the Providence River but the bass have thinned out.”&nbsp; Manny Macedo of Lucky Bait &amp; Tackle, Warren said, “Some anglers are switching to night fishing and they are using eels with success.&nbsp; The Mt. Hope Bay seems to be producing better than the West Passage.”&nbsp; “We had one of the largest surf casting tournaments take place this weekend and no bass of decent size were caught.&nbsp; Only bluefish.&nbsp; This shows how tough fishing from shore was this week.” said Nellie Valles of Maridee Bait &amp; Canvass, Narragansett.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Black sea bass (BSB)</b> bite is on.&nbsp; “We had a customer catch a sea bass on an umbrella rig.&nbsp; Overall fishing for them has been very good.” said Many Macedo of Lucky Bait.&nbsp; Many anglers are limiting out (three fish/person/day) catching black sea bass when fluke fishing.<span style="background: white;"><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><span style="background: white;">“Summer flounder (fluke) </span></b><span style="background: white;">fishing is getting stronger. Fish are being caught at the windfarm and Nebraska Shoals and the Green Hill area are yielding some nice fish in 45 to 50 feet of water.” said Elisa Cahill of Snug Harbor Marina.&nbsp; Manny Macedo of Lucky Bait said, “Fluke fishing in the Sakonnet area, under the Mt. Hope Bridge, under and around the Newport Bridge and Ft. Adams was good this past week.”&nbsp; John Littlefield said, “Some customers have been able to land fluke off Warwick Neck as well as in Greenwich Bay.”&nbsp; I fished the Jamestown Bridge/Dutch Island area last week and did well when wind and tide were in line and we could establish a good drift.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="background: white;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>The scup bite</b> exploded this week.&nbsp; “We had 17” scup being caught from the East Wall and the Hazard Avenue, Narragansett areas.” said Nellie Valles of Maridee Bait &amp; Canvas.&nbsp; John Littlefield said, “Scup was the big story this week with anglers landing them from Colt State Park shore, the Wharf Tavern, Sabin Point.”&nbsp; Manny Macedo of Lucky Bait said, “We had two customers limit out on scup…. That’s a total of 60 keepers (30 fish/person/day, minimum size is 10”).”<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Sea robins</b> are prolific in our Bays and off coastal shores.&nbsp; Angler John Migliore of Aquidneck Island caught a large sea robin last week. &nbsp;Migliore said, “What was unusual is that a school of sea robins were feeding on the surface much like a bluefish or striped bass feeding frenzy.”&nbsp; Many anglers are now cleaning and eating sea robin tails.&nbsp;<o:p></o:p></div>Captain Dave Montihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16831022398407972345noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1441293999360934440.post-88978794382556621422017-06-16T04:15:00.000-07:002017-06-16T04:15:12.894-07:00Fishing for fluke improves, Commerce Dept. agreement will hurt red snapper<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-MXilaKrmNcA/WUOykSj0ejI/AAAAAAAACGQ/W5OxcAhOCT8iew3TEilMtmrdx0coqIgpQCLcBGAs/s1600/Big%2Bbass%2B-%2BPhoto%2BA.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1293" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-MXilaKrmNcA/WUOykSj0ejI/AAAAAAAACGQ/W5OxcAhOCT8iew3TEilMtmrdx0coqIgpQCLcBGAs/s320/Big%2Bbass%2B-%2BPhoto%2BA.jpg" width="258" /></a></div><i><span style="font-size: 10pt;">Stanley Maigarie of Narragansett with a 47 pound striped bass he caught on a fluke jig and teaser under feeding bluefish on his way back from Block Island Tuesday.</span><span style="font-size: 10pt;">&nbsp;</span></i><br /> <div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7UlmdJ-FeoY/WUOyl3xT4DI/AAAAAAAACGU/Rsbr9VwdQ-4pPlIkgsShbIzWo4JWZ-AUwCLcBGAs/s1600/BI%2Bfluke%2B-%2BPhoto%2BB.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1290" data-original-width="1515" height="272" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7UlmdJ-FeoY/WUOyl3xT4DI/AAAAAAAACGU/Rsbr9VwdQ-4pPlIkgsShbIzWo4JWZ-AUwCLcBGAs/s320/BI%2Bfluke%2B-%2BPhoto%2BB.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 150%;"><i>Mike Clini (right) with a 9.6 pound summer flounder and Matt Davidson with a 6 pounder, both caught in the Block Island wind farm area aboard ‘Skipjack’ captained by Rich Hittinger of Warwick.&nbsp;</i><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 150%;"><i><br /></i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Where’s the bite<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Striped bass. </b>“There are so many pogies (Atlantic menhaden) in the rivers (Providence and Seekonk) that anglers are scooping them up with nets. School bass are being caught in the rivers with 20 pound fish mixed in.&nbsp; Fishermen are catching 12 to 18 pound fish on pogie chunks in the triangle area of Barrington beach, Nayatt Point and Conimicut Light.” said John Littlefield of Archie’s Bait &amp; Tackle, Riverside.&nbsp; Andrew Cournoyer of Riverside Marine Bait &amp; Tackle, Tiverton said, “Things really opened up in Mt. Hope Bay this week.&nbsp; Customers are catching striped bass with pogies and umbrella rigs.” The abundance of bait in bays and rivers has made it a bit difficult to get the attention of bass so anglers have started using swimming lures of all type with success to attract striped bass.&nbsp; “The bite has been solid in pre-dawn and late dusk hours with lures from Conimicut Light all the way up the Providence River”, said Jeff Ingber of Ocean State Tackle, Providence.&nbsp; John Lavallee of Continental Bait &amp; Tackle, Cranston said, “We fished the upper Bay this weekend at night and landed fifteen striped in the 28” to 33” range using chucks of pogies.”<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Black sea bass (BSB)</b> bite is on.&nbsp; The season opened May 25<sup>th</sup> and fish are being caught with anglers limiting out when fluke fishing.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Last Monday night at a public workshop RI DEM took comments on their recommendation to reduce catch limits to meet Atlantic States Marine Fishers Commission (ASMFC) harvest limits.&nbsp; Pending final ASMFC approval (which seems imminent) recreational anglers will be allowed to take just five fish and not seven in the months of November and December. So the season catch limits for BSB (minimum size is 15”) are as follows:&nbsp; May 24 to August 31, 2017- three fish/person/day; September 1 to September 21, 2017 – seven fish/person/day; September 22 to October 21`- closed (when the Federal BSB season is closed); October 22 – October 31 – seven fish/person/day; and November 1 to December 31, five fish/person/day.<span style="background: white;"> <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><span style="background: white;">Summer flounder (fluke).</span></b><span style="background: white;"> Fluke fishing in the East Passage of Narragansett Bay on the shipping channel edges has been producing for anglers as well as the Warwick Light area and the West Passage south of the Jamestown Bridge. &nbsp;Tuesday Margaret and Ken Choiniere of Seekonk, MA &nbsp;hooked up with fluke to 22” on the edges of the underwater gully south of Dutch Island with fish being caught on the bank as we left the gully. This week Rich Hittinger and guests fishing the Block Island wind farm area on his vessel <i>Skipjack</i> caught multiple fluke to 9.6 pounds. Capt. Frank Blount of the Frances Fleet, said, “Fluke fishing was solid this week. &nbsp;A good mix of nice size fluke and good size sea bass on most outings with the largest fish being a seven pound fluke and a five pound black sea bass. Best trip of the week overall was Saturday. Some anglers had bag limits on both fluke and sea bass. Both bait rigs and jigs worked.”&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>The scup bite</b> at Colt State Park in Bristol has been good with anglers catching them at the mouth of the Sakonnet River from shore as well and just about on any structure where water is moving.&nbsp; <b><o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Sea robins</b> are being caught in the Bay and along the shore. &nbsp;Anglers are now keeping them, cleaning the tails and eating them.&nbsp; They are a great eating fish.</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 150%;"> </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Freshwater</b> fishing continues to remain strong with anglers catching a lot of large and small mouth bass.&nbsp; John Littlefield of Archie’s Bait said, “Angler Brian Strayer caught a 5 ½ pound largemouth bass at Bad Luck Pond (Rehoboth, MA).&nbsp; Anglers have also done well with bass at Brickyard Pond, Barrington.&nbsp; The bass have not been large there but the bite is good.”&nbsp; John Lavallee of Continental Bait said, “Customers are catching bass but the trout bite is a little off as the water is warming and some ponds are starting to get fished out.”&nbsp;<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Commerce Dept. agreement to halt red snapper rebuild<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">The Department of Commerce announced last week that an agreement between <span style="color: #101c3b; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), members of the U.S. House of Representatives and the five Gulf Coast states to extend the 2017 recreational red snapper season by 39 weekend days in the Gulf of Mexico for private recreational anglers. &nbsp;&nbsp;<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="color: #101c3b; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">The action was lauded by some in the recreational fishing community and criticized by others. NOAA had reduced fishing days to rebuild the stock.&nbsp; The red snapper fishery is rebuilding, however, scientists and conservationists felt it premature to liberalize regulations at this time as they estimate red snapper overfishing could occur</span> in one year and damage the rebuilding plan for the species.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">In a press release Wednesday, the Center for Sportfishing Policy, an industry group composed of recreational fishing industry supporters in tourism, boat manufacturing and fishing gear and tackle retailers said, “As a result of today’s action, red snapper<b> </b>season will reopen for private recreational anglers in the Gulf out to 200 miles every Friday, Saturday and Sunday, including Monday and Tuesday of the July Fourth holiday and the Monday of Labor Day. This 39-day season will begin Friday, June 16, in time for Father’s Day weekend and ends on Labor Day, September 4. State seasons will run congruently with the federal season.”<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 12.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 12.0pt; vertical-align: baseline;">Meredith More, director of Fish Conservation at the Ocean Conservancy said “Red snapper regulation liberalization will almost certainly lead to overfishing of red snapper, plain and simple. Private anglers of the Gulf of Mexico deserve a real solution to the problem of shortening seasons for red snapper, not an ill-conceived quick-fix.&nbsp; Years of sacrifices and tough choices by fishermen and managers have begun rebuilding this valuable fishery. We’re finally seeing more fish in the water and any short-sighted decision that puts those gains at risk is an affront to their hard work.” <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 12.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 12.0pt; vertical-align: baseline;">Rep. Raúl Grijalva, the top Democrat on the Natural Resources panel, agreed that the decision will interfere with ongoing efforts to recover the red snapper population.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 12.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 12.0pt; vertical-align: baseline;">In a press statement Rep. Grijalva said "Gulf Coast businesses literally cannot afford a fishery management fiat that eliminates all the progress that has been made… The public needs to see a scientific justification for this plan before it goes into effect."<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 12.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 12.0pt; vertical-align: baseline;">Grijalva pointed to the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act, noting the law is intended to ensure the use of scientific data for fisheries decisions.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; vertical-align: baseline;">He noted that the&nbsp;<i>Federal Register</i>&nbsp;announcement of the extension suggested the amended fishing season "may delay the ultimate rebuilding of the stock by as many as six years."<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Now… a drive-up bait window <o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Ocean State Tackle, Providence now has a drive up window for bait, fishing tackle, gear and soft drinks.&nbsp; Dave Henault, owner of Ocean State said “People want to fish.&nbsp; They do not want to stand in line so we developed the drive-up window to accommodate them.&nbsp; This will get them in and out a lot quicker.”<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Fly tying workshop at Free Library<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">A fly tying workshop will be held on Wednesday, June 21, 6:30 p.m. at the North Kingstown Free Library, 100 Boone Street, North Kingston.&nbsp; John Smith, a lifetime angler, avid fly tyer and biology professor at East Stroudsburg University will tie a few different styles of flies and introduce participants to basic fly tying equipment.&nbsp; Registration is requested but not required.&nbsp; Call 401.294.3306.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Graduate School of Oceanography launches seminar series<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"> </div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><i>‘Warming Seas and the Ocean State’</i> is the topic that will be discussed Thursday, June 22, 7:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. at the Coastal Institute Auditorium, 220 South Ferry Road, Narragansett.&nbsp; The discussion will be led by students of the University of Rhode Island Graduate School of Oceanography.&nbsp; The seminar will cover how physical processes are responding &nbsp;to warming sea surface temperatures.&nbsp; The later portion of the program will focus on the effects of warming on coastal ecosystems, illustrating how fish species are being impacted by climate change and what it means for Rhode Island fisheries.&nbsp; For information contact <a href="mailto:gsobayinformed@gmail.com">gsobayinformed@gmail.com</a> .<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div>Captain Dave Montihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16831022398407972345noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1441293999360934440.post-6716643007959589492017-06-09T08:37:00.001-07:002017-06-09T08:37:51.391-07:00Catching that elusive striped bass<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/--NMUC_5QD-g/WTq_RwFnJlI/AAAAAAAACF8/HsLAzhR3X-kYOhJLcV68i8Z9Vv4zOYJlACLcB/s1600/Mike%2BSwain%2BStriped%2Bbass%2B-%2BPhoto%2BA.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="999" data-original-width="900" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/--NMUC_5QD-g/WTq_RwFnJlI/AAAAAAAACF8/HsLAzhR3X-kYOhJLcV68i8Z9Vv4zOYJlACLcB/s320/Mike%2BSwain%2BStriped%2Bbass%2B-%2BPhoto%2BA.jpeg" width="288" /></a></div><i>&nbsp;Mike Swain with one of the many striped bass he has caught in the Conimicut Light area using live and chunks of Atlantic menhaden (pogies).</i><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 150%;"> <o:p></o:p></span></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/--rAVVjgF-ys/WTq_WwXl0sI/AAAAAAAACGA/1JmfBMjS-gQC9SZ60RPTJDkcitdOovotgCLcB/s1600/BI%2Bflounder%2BRH%2B-%2BPhoto%2BB.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1210" data-original-width="1512" height="256" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/--rAVVjgF-ys/WTq_WwXl0sI/AAAAAAAACGA/1JmfBMjS-gQC9SZ60RPTJDkcitdOovotgCLcB/s320/BI%2Bflounder%2BRH%2B-%2BPhoto%2BB.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="color: #1a2a37; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><i>Rich Hittinger of Warwick with a 7.8 pound summer flounder (fluke) he caught off Block Island last Thursday when fishing on his vessel ‘Skipjack’.<o:p></o:p></i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="color: #1a2a37; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><i><br /></i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Catching that elusive striped bass<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">You’ve tried to catch a keeper sized striped bass (28” or larger), but just have not hooked up with one yet.&nbsp; It can be very frustrating because you can try and try with no luck.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">However, June is the time to try to catch one in Narragansett and Mt Hope Bays as Atlantic menhaden (pogies), a form of herring, are up in our covers and rivers spawning and the striped bass have followed them into the upper Bay on their northern migration.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">I have two bits of advice that have helped me over the years to catch striped bass.&nbsp; First, you can’t catch fish where there are no fish so you have to put yourself in places where the fish are feeding.&nbsp; And second, you need to be ready with a number of strategies.&nbsp; Some days they are biting on live or chunks of Atlantic menhaden, other days trolling umbrella rigs or tube and work, and yet some times of year they like eels.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">To put yourself where the fish are read fishing reports/blogs and talk to friends and bait &amp; tackle shop owners to develop a fishing plan.&nbsp; Select five or six places you will go to find the fish based on the research you have done.&nbsp; Now that you have your fishing plan, be ready with a number of fishing strategies to land that striped bass.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Remember what works one day, may not work the next depending on what fish are feeding on, the weather, tides, temperature, etc. Here are some of my favorite striped bass fishing strategies.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Favorite ways to catch striped bass<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Trolling with umbrella rigs.</b>&nbsp; Like to use this technique trolling in deeper parts of Narragansett Bay, off Newport or Block Island with a variety of squid, shad, worm or eel umbrella rigs.&nbsp; Hook two fish at the same time and you will experience a great fight. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Live menhaden.</b>&nbsp; Snag the live bait with a weighted treble hook or net them.&nbsp; Hook the bait through the bridge of the nose, find a school of fish and put the live menhaden into the school of bait and let it swim. Used when menhaden are running strong, particularly up the Providence River in early spring.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Chunking fresh or frozen menhaden.</b>&nbsp; You can anchor (and chum); drift fish or fish the moving bait schools with chunks. &nbsp;Some anglers use a weighted slide to get the bait down to the striped bass.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Surface plugs, swimming lures and soft plastics</b>.&nbsp; Have caught hundreds of school bass in the spring using surface plugs and swimming lures of all types.&nbsp; Great way to catch fish in coves, on rivers, etc.&nbsp; My favorite is a grey Yozuri Crystal Minnow.&nbsp; Many anglers love soft plastics use them successfully in the spring.&nbsp; Make sure the plastic baits are scented if they are not add some menhaden scent. Who wants to eat plastic?<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Trolling with tube and worm.</b>&nbsp; I have had great success in the Bay using lead line weighted with two or three ounces of lead between the line and a five foot monofilament leader.&nbsp; I find that bubblegum or red colored tubes work best in spring (the tube hook is tipped with clam worm).&nbsp;&nbsp; The idea of added weight is to get the line down to where the fish are. Tube and worm trolling has been a successful technique for the Southwest side of Block Island using 300 ft. of wire line out in 35 to 45 feet of water, amber colored tubes seem to work best there.<b> <o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Buck tail jigs with pork rind strips.</b>&nbsp; Have had success with this method to get under schools of blue fish and to the striped bass on the bottom.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Let me know if you catch that keeper and send along a photo to dmontifish@verizon.net.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>DEM to hold fly fishing workshops <o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">The Department of Environmental Management (DEM) will hold three day fly fishing workshops on Monday, June 12, 19 and 26, 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. at the Coventry Public Library, 1672 Flat River Road, Coventry and on Wednesday, June 14, 21 and 28, 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. at the Greenville Public Library, 573 Putnam Pike, Greenville.&nbsp; Instruction and equipment needed will be covered with all gear provided.&nbsp; However, participants are welcome to bring their own gear.&nbsp; Adults and children 10 and older are invited to attend.&nbsp; Space is limited.&nbsp; To register contact Scott Travers at <a href="mailto:scott.travers@dem.gov">scott.travers@dem.gov</a>. (Classes also stared at Glocester Manton Public Library on June 6).<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">DEM is also holding an introduction to freshwater fly fishing workshop on Saturday, June 17 from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. at Addieville East Farm, Mapleville, RI.&nbsp; Adults, families and children ten and older may attend. Participants will learn about equipment needed for the sport, fly-tying and casting and best areas to fish in RI.&nbsp; Lunch will be provided. Fee is $15 per person.&nbsp; To register contact Kimberly Sullivan at <a href="mailto:Kimberly.Sullivan@dem.ri.gov">Kimberly.Sullivan@dem.ri.gov</a>.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Where’s the bite<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Striped bass.</b>&nbsp; I haven’t heard of fifty pound fish being caught in the Bay in a long time but this week they were. Capt. Randy Bagwell of River Rebel Charters weighted in a 50 pound striped bass caught in Mt. Hope Bay.&nbsp; Manny Macedo of Lucky Bait &amp; Tackle, Warren, said “Randy came in with his customer to weigh and clean the fish; they were greeting customers at the door asking if anyone wanted some bass fillets.”&nbsp; Dave Henault of Ocean State Tackle, Providence said, “A customer sent me a picture of a 53 pound fish caught in the Bay and we have some very nice bass in the 30 pound range being caught in the Providence and Seekonk rivers.&nbsp; There are big bluefish mixed in with the bass.”&nbsp; Mike Wade of Watch Hill Outfitters,, Westerly said, “Bass are on the reefs eating squid and the worm hatches in South County Ponds (like Ninigret Pound) are still going strong on warm days. We also have a lot of Atlantic menhaden and bass in the Pawcatuck River.”&nbsp; Peter Jenkins of the Saltwater Edge, Middletown, said Monday, “Today there was great fishing for bass on Sugar Reef.&nbsp; The squid were everywhere.&nbsp; Bass were caught on every drift using Slug Go lures and files.”<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Summer flounder</b> (fluke fishing).&nbsp; I fished the Newport Bridge area with a slow bite and a lot of shorts this week.&nbsp; Anglers fishing the southern coastal shore experienced mixed fishing.&nbsp; Mike Wade of Watch Hill Outfitters said, “Fluke fishing at Fisher’s Island to Misquamicut Beach has been good.&nbsp; Customer Mike Lacz landed a 27” fluke off Misquamicut this week.”&nbsp; Fish for fluke in the Bay is spotty.&nbsp; Anglers are catching fish but not in large numbers.&nbsp; Angler Rich Hittinger said the bite was good a Block island catching fluke to 7.8 pounds last Thursday. Capt. <span style="background: white; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">Frank Blount, of the Frances Fleet said, “A lot of quality fish and a lot of limit catches. On Saturday's trip Capt. Rich found a hungry pile of nice size sea bass to four pounds limiting the boat out.”</span><o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="background: white; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Scup. </b>“We had a customer catch a 17” scup off the Stone Bridge this week with some nice fish being off of Colt State Park, Bristol.” said Manny Macedo of Lucky Bait.&nbsp; “The big news of the week is that scup are in… anglers are catching them off Tiverton and Greenwich Bay.” said Henault of Ocean State.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Sea robins</b>. More anglers are keeping them to eat.&nbsp; Cut of their tails and fillet them.&nbsp; They have a delicious white meet.&nbsp; In Europe sea robins are a major ingredient in bouillabaisse.&nbsp; I have cleaned them for many charter customers and all have said they loved the way they tasted.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Black sea bass</b> bite is on.&nbsp; The season opened May 25<sup>th</sup> and fish are being caught with anglers limiting out when fluke fishing.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"> </div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Freshwater</b> fishing continues to remain strong. “Not many anglers are targeting trout but those that are continue to catch them.&nbsp; And, we have a lot of anglers catching &nbsp;good numbers of largemouth bass.&nbsp; They may not be as large as last year but the bite is stronger.” said Henault.<o:p></o:p></div>Captain Dave Montihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16831022398407972345noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1441293999360934440.post-2200470013724030242017-06-02T07:46:00.000-07:002017-06-02T07:46:53.961-07:00Fishing camp is a hoot<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-pjQVlkFF15E/WTF3ln0L1SI/AAAAAAAACFo/1uRxzN9xxA0Pez9rprV4eG0SPWE7hTnOQCLcB/s1600/Youth%2BFishing%2BCamp%2B-%2BPhoto%2BA.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1061" data-original-width="1600" height="212" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-pjQVlkFF15E/WTF3ln0L1SI/AAAAAAAACFo/1uRxzN9xxA0Pez9rprV4eG0SPWE7hTnOQCLcB/s320/Youth%2BFishing%2BCamp%2B-%2BPhoto%2BA.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><i>&nbsp;Richard Reich, lead surfcasting instructor, explains some of the fundamentals of casting to youth fishing camp participants on Rocky Point Beach, Warwick, RI.&nbsp;</i><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><o:p></o:p></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Vmpy5fgr7Vg/WTF3m_hyIII/AAAAAAAACFs/Ro6t7o0jGrYGr4_sUHZMlbPrSgkQgwK_wCLcB/s1600/Fishing%2Bcamp%2B-%2BPhoto%2BF.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Vmpy5fgr7Vg/WTF3m_hyIII/AAAAAAAACFs/Ro6t7o0jGrYGr4_sUHZMlbPrSgkQgwK_wCLcB/s320/Fishing%2Bcamp%2B-%2BPhoto%2BF.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="color: #1a2a37; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><i>Fishing appeals to our sense of adventure and builds a life time of memories with family and friends.<o:p></o:p></i></span></div><br /><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Fishing camp is a hoot<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">It is important to teach our youth about fishing.<span style="color: #202020; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;;">&nbsp; Fishing appeals to our sense of adventure and teaches us patience. It is one of those activities where science and art converge. It teaches us to be good stewards of the environment and it allows us to build a lifetime of memories and friendships.</span><b><o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">June marks the second year of a highly successful fishing camp for youth that will take place Tuesday, June 27 through Thursday, June 29 from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at Rocky Point State Park. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">The three day camp, sponsored by the Rhode Island Saltwater Anglers Association (RISAA) and the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management (DEM), will host 50 children from seven to fourteen years old. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="color: #202020; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;;">Steve Medeiros, RISAA president said, “The goal this year is to spin off our highly successful 2016 pilot camp.&nbsp; Enhancements will include more fishing time on the water.&nbsp; Yes we will have instruction on basic fishing skills, how to cast, safety and the environment but we plan to focus on fishing.&nbsp; After all it is a ‘fishing’ camp. On the first day participants will fish from shore, a fluke fishing trip on the Seven B’s Party boat out of Galilee, RI is planned for day two, and participants will fish on RISAA member recreational vessels on the third day in the Greenwich Bay, Warwick Neck and Rocky Point areas.”<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="color: #202020; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="color: #202020; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;;">Medeiros said, “We find children of all backgrounds and cultures are attracted to fishing and our aim is to give them a proper introduction to the sport. We have about 35 volunteer recreational fisher men, women and captains working on the camp project.”<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="color: #202020; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="color: #202020; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;;">The pilot fishing camp was such a success last year that it has now been funded by U.S Fish &amp; Wildlife in partnership with the RI DEM and RISAA for the next five years.&nbsp; The aim this year is to post another success and roll the camp concept out to an additional location in 2018 <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="color: #202020; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;;">The same children attend all three days of the camp split into groups by age and fishing experience.&nbsp; There is no cost for children to participate and lunch is provided, however, parents must complete and sign all participation forms, provide their child with proper attire for an outdoor fishing camp and weather conditions and must provide transportation for children each day to and from Rocky Point State Park.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="color: #202020; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="color: #202020; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;;">Topics to be covered over the three day camp include fish identification,&nbsp; fishing laws, use of spinning and conventional tackle, basic marine biology, how and why to use different baits and lures, casting and fishing from shore as well as boating safety and fishing on a boat. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="color: #202020; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="color: #202020; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;;">The fishing camp is sponsored by the RISAA, DEM, U.S. Fish &amp; Wildlife and the City of Warwick.&nbsp; Brewers Marina in Warwick Cove is donating dock space for 20 vessels that will be used for fishing at camp. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="color: #202020; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="color: #202020; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;;">There is limited camp space available, sign up this week by calling the RI Saltwater Anglers Association office at 401.826.2121.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="color: #202020; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>DEM to host Fly Fishing School at Addieville East Farm<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">The Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management (DEM) will host a fly fishing school on Saturday, June 17, 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. at Addieville East Farm.&nbsp; Learn the basics of entomology, fly tying, fly casting, the right equipment to use, knot tying and then fly fishing in a freshly stocked trout pond. &nbsp;&nbsp;<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">Minimum age is eleven years old.&nbsp; Cost of $15.00 will cover your lunch with the fly fishing program free.&nbsp; All fly fishing equipment will be supplied but feel free to take your own.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">To register contact Kimberly Sullivan, DEM at&nbsp;<a href="mailto:kimberly.sullivan@dem.ri.gov" target="_blank"><span style="color: #954f72; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;;">kimberly.sullivan@dem.ri.gov</span></a>&nbsp;or&nbsp;401-539-0037; or Scott Travers, DEM at <a href="mailto:scott.travers@dem.ri.gov" target="_blank"><span style="color: #954f72; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;;">scott.travers@dem.ri.gov</span></a> or 401-539-0016.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Where’s the bite<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Freshwater fishing </b>slowed his week with cooler weather.&nbsp; John Littlefield of Archie’s Bait &amp; Tackle, Riverside said, “We are selling a lot of shiners but customers do not seem to be catching bass like they were last week.&nbsp; It has been cold.&nbsp; However, anglers are still catching trout at stocked ponds, even at Willet Avenue Pond (Riverside).&nbsp; I can’t believe the amount of trout they are pulling out of that pond since the second stocking.”<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Squid fishing </b>was good this week.&nbsp; Large numbers of boats are fishing for squid off the southern coastal shores, both commercial and recreational vessels. So the fluke bite has been on squid this week in that area.&nbsp; Capt. Frank Blount of the Francis Fleet said, “Sq<span style="background: white; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">uid fishing was very good on Thursday Night with hi hooks filling upwards to a half bucket apiece. Unfortunately things did not stay that way &nbsp;over the holiday weekend as even though the winds were light and variable the water was still churned up from last Friday's blow.</span>“<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Summer flounder (fluke) </b>fishing<b></b>is heating up with fish being caught in the Bay, along our southern coastal shore and out on the south and southeast sides of Block Island.&nbsp; Elisa Cahill of Snug Harbor Marina, South Kingstown said, “Customers are doing well in about 70 feet of water off the southeast side of Block Island in the ocean windfarm area and along the southern coastal shore keepers are being caught with a lot of shorts mixed in, a lot of fish are coming up just short at 18.5 inches (this year the minimum size for summer flounder is 19", four fish/person/day).”&nbsp; Ken Ferrara of Ray’s Bait &amp; Tackle, Warwick said, “The fluke bite is pretty good off Warwick Neck and they are catching some keeper black sea bass when fluke fishing.” Capt. Frank Blount of the Frances Fleet said, “<span style="background: white; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">Good catches were made both on the local beaches and also around Block Island. A decent amount of limit catches were recorded. Best for size was on Saturday with an 8 lb. pool fish and other fish in the six to seven pound range. A few nice sea bass mixing in and plenty of short fluke.”</span><o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="background: white; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><br /></span></div><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Striped bass</b> fishing is good in the Bay with most action in the East Passage from Bristol all the way up to the Hurricane Barrier in Providence.&nbsp; “There are a lot of school bass being caught with some keepers mixed in this week.&nbsp; Customer Albert Bettencourt with his son and grandchildren caught over 60 small school bass using jigs and small spoons last Thursday night.” said John Littlefield of Archie’s Bait.&nbsp; Holly Frye of The Tackle Box said, “One customer weighted in striped bass to 13 pounds this week fishing with lures at Conimicut Point from shore.”&nbsp; “The southwest ledge and north rip at Block Island are yielding small but keeper size striped bass in the 10 and 15 pound range.&nbsp; Anglers are trolling umbrella rigs with multiple fish hooking up at the same time. School bass with some keepers mixed in are being caught from the beaches as well as Pt. Judith Pond, Ninigret and other ponds along the southern coastal shore.” said Elisa Cahill of Snug Harbor Marina.&nbsp; Ken Ferrara of Ray’s Bait &amp; Tackle said, “Bass are being caught in multiple locations in the East Passage from Popasquash Point, Bristol to the Providence River Hurricane Barrier area. Anglers are using Atlantic menhaden with success, some are drifting with live pogies and overs are anchoring up and chumming with chunks.&nbsp; Ohio Ledge and Napatree Point have been good..”&nbsp; “We weighed in a 41 pound fish caught in the East Passage by Rocky Patriarca off Prudence Island but we also weighed in 27 and 31 pound fish caught in the Conimicut Light area this weekend.” said John Littlefield.<o:p></o:p></div>Captain Dave Montihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16831022398407972345noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1441293999360934440.post-62914169808108643032017-06-02T06:25:00.002-07:002017-06-02T06:25:18.781-07:00Warm water moving fish in and out of region<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-n27LxZT0USo/WTFlV_mzxzI/AAAAAAAACFY/-DiasCMZmXYEJsY13eeyMQkJkRTaBl6cgCEw/s1600/Kevin%2BFetzer%2Bwith%2Bsea%2Bbass%2B-%2BPhoto%2BA.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="961" data-original-width="1600" height="192" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-n27LxZT0USo/WTFlV_mzxzI/AAAAAAAACFY/-DiasCMZmXYEJsY13eeyMQkJkRTaBl6cgCEw/s320/Kevin%2BFetzer%2Bwith%2Bsea%2Bbass%2B-%2BPhoto%2BA.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><i>&nbsp;Kevin Fetzer with a black sea bass caught last year.&nbsp; The season opened Thursday, May 25<sup>th</sup> with a three fish/person/day limit, however, regulations are expected to change.</i><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><o:p></o:p></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-O7NbqDS9weI/WTFlXqRS3xI/AAAAAAAACFc/VT2k1-ujUtkbrdRTXrk-sF1mqmDbQGQvQCEw/s1600/Bonnie%2527s%2Bbass%2B-%2BPhoto%2BB.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="800" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-O7NbqDS9weI/WTFlXqRS3xI/AAAAAAAACFc/VT2k1-ujUtkbrdRTXrk-sF1mqmDbQGQvQCEw/s320/Bonnie%2527s%2Bbass%2B-%2BPhoto%2BB.jpg" width="213" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><i>Bonnie Audino’s 31.5 pound Taunton River striped bass caught when trolling a T-man tube &amp; worm with her husband Larry. As required on 34” or larger recreational fish the right pectoral fin has been cut.</i><o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Warm water moving fish in and out of region <o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 7.5pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 7.5pt; vertical-align: baseline;">Climate change and warming water is impacting the location and numbers of important fish species on the east coast. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 7.5pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 7.5pt; vertical-align: baseline;">A study published in <i>Progress in Oceanography</i> titled “<i><span style="color: #2e2e2e; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;; mso-font-kerning: 18.0pt;">Marine species distribution shifts on the U.S. Northeast Continental Shelf under continued ocean warming”, </span></i>shows that some fish species are gaining more natural habitat in northern regions and others are losing suitable habitat.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 7.5pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 7.5pt; vertical-align: baseline;">Those gaining habitat include spiny dogfish, summer flounder, black sea bass, and lobsters.&nbsp; Yet we are losing suitable habitat for such species as American cod, haddock, thorny skate and Acadian redfish because the water is too warm and the fish are moving to deeper water.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 7.5pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 7.5pt; vertical-align: baseline;">The projections indicate that as species shift from one management jurisdiction to another, or span state and federal jurisdictions, there will be an increased need for collaboration among management groups to set quotas and establish allocations.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 7.5pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 7.5pt; vertical-align: baseline;">“Species that are currently found in the Mid-Atlantic Bight and on Georges Bank may have enough suitable habitat in the future because they can shift northward as temperatures&nbsp; increase,”&nbsp; said lead author Kristin Kleisner, formerly of the Northeast Fisheries Science Center (NEFSC)‘s Ecosystems Dynamics and Assessment Branch and now a senior scientist at the Environmental Defense Fund. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 7.5pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 7.5pt; vertical-align: baseline;">“Species concentrated in the Gulf of Maine, where species have shifted to deeper water rather than northward, may be more likely to experience a significant decline in suitable habitat and move out of the region altogether. &nbsp;Given the historical changes observed on the Northeast Shelf over the past five decades and confidence in the projection of continued ocean warming in the region, it is likely there will be major changes within this ecosystem.” said Kleisner.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 7.5pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 7.5pt; vertical-align: baseline;">In a press release this week, the National Oceanographic &amp; Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) said, “Scientists used a high-resolution global climate model and historical observations of species distributions on the Northeast U.S. Shelf and found commercially important species will continue to shift their distribution as ocean waters warm two to three times faster than the global average through the end of this century. Projected increases in surface to bottom waters of 6.6 to 9 degrees F from current conditions are expected.”&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 7.5pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 7.5pt; vertical-align: baseline;">It is important to note that sea surface temperatures in the Gulf of Maine have warmed faster than 99 percent of the global ocean over the past decade.&nbsp; Northward shifts of many species has already occurred from one management jurisdiction to another. These changes will directly affect fishing communities, as species now landed at those ports move out of range, and new species move in.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; vertical-align: baseline;">A copy of the article can be found at <a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/"><span style="color: windowtext;">www.sciencedirect.com</span></a>. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Black sea bass regulations changing<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div style="background: white; line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Calibri&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">NOAA Fisheries announced revised 2017 and projected 2018 catch limits for black sea bass taking effect May 25, 2017 for both recreational and commercial fisheries.&nbsp; The revisions were instituted because of the recent benchmark stock assessment completed in December, 2016.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="background: white; line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Calibri&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><br /></span></div><div style="background: white; line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Calibri&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">Based on the new stock assessment information, NOAA is implementing revisions to the 2017 black sea bass specifications that represent a 53-percent increase in the 2017 commercial quota, and a 52-percent increase in the 2017 recreational harvest limit.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="background: white; line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Calibri&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><br /></span></div><div style="background: white; line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Calibri&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">Additionally, NOAA is<span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;"> removing an accountability measure that was applied to the 2017 commercial fishery at the beginning of the fishing year to account for a previous overage in 2015.&nbsp; </span>At press time Rhode Island commercial quotas and recreation fishing harvest limits had not been revised.</span><b><span style="font-family: &quot;Calibri&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Trout Unlimited meeting May 31<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">The Narragansett Chapter of Trout Unlimited (TU225) will hold its monthly meeting and seminar on Wednesday, May 31, 6:00 p.m. at the Arcadia Management Area Check Station, Rt. 165, (Ten Rod Road), &nbsp;Wood River, Exeter, RI.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Members and guests are invited to come at 5:00 p.m. for hot dogs, hamburgers, salads, chips, and soda/water.&nbsp; Park Regulations for the Arcadia Management Area do NOT permit consumption of alcohol.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">At 6:00 p.m. a short meeting will be followed by a spey casting demonstration by Vinny Diodato. Those wishing to participate are invited to bring their own equipment.&nbsp; A limited supply of loaner gear will be available.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Contact Glenn Place at 1-401-225-7712 or <a href="mailto:TU225President@gmail.com"><span style="color: windowtext;">TU225President@gmail.com</span></a> for information.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Where’s the bite<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Freshwater fishing </b>held up well last week with a variety of species being caught.&nbsp; Manny Macedo of Lucky Bait &amp; Tackle, Warren said, “Anglers are catching smallmouth and largemouth bass, trout and everything in-between at Stafford Pond and other ponds in the area.”&nbsp; Mike Wade of Watch Hill Outfitters, Westerly said, “With the cooler weather the fresh water fishing has held up pretty good.&nbsp; We have actually extending the trout season with good numbers of fish being caught in waterways stocked by DEM.”&nbsp; Dave Henault of Ocean State Tackle, Providence said, “Carp fishing remains very strong as well as the large and smallmouth bass bite.&nbsp; Customers are buying shiners to fish for bass and then coming back for more.”<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Squid fishing.&nbsp; </b>Capt. Frank Blount, owner of the Frances Fleet, reported some improved squid fishing this past Friday Night with a really nice shot of good size tubes later in the evening and a few anglers filling upwards to a half of a four or five gallon pail apiece.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>“Striped bass</b> fishing for school bass in the ponds has been very good and anglers are catching 28” to 32” bass at the north end of Block Island using Diamond jigs. And last night Andrew Crocker, an associate here, caught a 22” squeteague in Salt Pond using a Ronz lure.” said Matt Conti of Snug Harbor Marina. &nbsp;Large numbers of fish being caught in the Bay with larger ones just starting to be caught.&nbsp; Bonnie Audino caught a 31.5 pound striped bass on her husband Larry’s boat when trolling a T-Man tube and work in the Tauton River. Jeff Ingver of Ocean State Tackle, Providence said, “We have reports of customers catching 34” and 35” fish right at the Hurricane Barrier in Providence with fish even being caught inside the Barrier.&nbsp; The bite is all on pogies most are chucking rather than live lining with success.”&nbsp; “Customers caught 42” and a 44” fish in the Bay, one was caught trolling a Niner umbrella rig and the second on a pogie.” said Macedo. &nbsp;“School striped bass are being caught from southern coastal beaches and in South County ponds where worm hatches have occurred on warm days last week. Not many fish over 28” are being caught but a volume of school bass are in the area.” said Mike Wade of Watch Hill Outfitters.&nbsp; Ken Landry of Ray’s Bait &amp; Tackle said, “The bass bite is on in the Bay, we landed six nice fish in the 20 to 30 pound range one day with a modest effort when fishing the East Passage of the Bay.”<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Fluke fishing</b> has been pretty good in the Bay with anglers landing fish to 22” in the Greenwich Bay/Warwick Light area.&nbsp; Mike Wade of Watch Hill Outfitters said, “Fisheries Island and Misquamicut have been pretty good with customer catching a 21”, even a 24” fish last week.”&nbsp; “Customers fishing for fluke are saying it has been hard to catch a 19” fish in the Bay, but things are just starting so fluke fishing should improve this week as the water warms.” said Manny Macedo of Lucky Bait.&nbsp; Reports of fish being caught along the south shore on the RISSA blog from several anglers, places like Green Hill, Nebraska Shoal are yielding shorts with keepers mixed in to 21”.&nbsp; Matt Conti of Snug Harbor said “Customers are catching fluke on the southwest side of Block Island and in the Green Hill area.”<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Scup and black sea bass.</b>&nbsp; “The scup bite is just starting to heat up with customers catch nice sized fish at Colt State Park.” Said Manny Macedo.&nbsp; The black sea bass bite has been slow put is expected to get better this week as the water warms with a season start date of May 25 with a three fish/person/day limit.<o:p></o:p></div>Captain Dave Montihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16831022398407972345noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1441293999360934440.post-32997694841576011842017-06-02T06:15:00.000-07:002017-06-02T06:15:33.839-07:00How big is fishing in RI?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Xr8T0IU0Zcs/WTFi_oEnf0I/AAAAAAAACFI/h1MJFhPdJU4fzfgCbvY4J78LgdkA5l9BwCLcB/s1600/Big%2Bschool%2Bbass%2B-%2BPhoto%2BA.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1261" data-original-width="1600" height="252" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Xr8T0IU0Zcs/WTFi_oEnf0I/AAAAAAAACFI/h1MJFhPdJU4fzfgCbvY4J78LgdkA5l9BwCLcB/s320/Big%2Bschool%2Bbass%2B-%2BPhoto%2BA.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><i>&nbsp;Large school bass like this 26” fish are being caught in coves, rivers and salt ponds like this one land by Kevin Fetzer of East Greenwich when fishing in Wickford Cove Saturday.&nbsp;</i><br /><div class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-YDGUlQaZlpA/WTFjB6GT_RI/AAAAAAAACFM/Wmx97bnNC7Y6fHkS9ZWYWvxIujqOqbrCwCLcB/s1600/Barging%2Breef%2Bmaterial%2B-%2BPhoto%2BB.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="942" data-original-width="1600" height="188" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-YDGUlQaZlpA/WTFjB6GT_RI/AAAAAAAACFM/Wmx97bnNC7Y6fHkS9ZWYWvxIujqOqbrCwCLcB/s320/Barging%2Breef%2Bmaterial%2B-%2BPhoto%2BB.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>&nbsp;<i>Experimental reefs at Quonochontaug Pond aim to improve the growth and survival of recreationally important fish such as black sea bass, tautog, striped bass, scup, summer flounder, and winter flounder.</i><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KX3ySj1_MeA/WTFjEP6wpcI/AAAAAAAACFQ/atNC4f7ThCo6x1zubnR8anv89NYSPW0rgCLcB/s1600/Bass%2Bin%2Bthe%2BBay%2B-%2BPhoto%2BC.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KX3ySj1_MeA/WTFjEP6wpcI/AAAAAAAACFQ/atNC4f7ThCo6x1zubnR8anv89NYSPW0rgCLcB/s320/Bass%2Bin%2Bthe%2BBay%2B-%2BPhoto%2BC.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><i>Bass in the Bay… Bob Signorello of Bethlehem, PA with two striped bass he caught of Cast-a-fly Charters last week.</i><o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><i><br /></i></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p><b>How big is fishing in RI?</b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">The women and men, who catch, process and support commercial fishing do our state and country a great service.&nbsp; They allow us to have fresh, nutritious seafood on our dinner table at a reasonable price.&nbsp; It you do not fish yourself, or have friends and relatives that fish, there is no other way you can acquire this great source of protein.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Additionally, commercial fishing has a big economic impact in Rhode Island, with recreational fishing having even a greater economic impact according to the National Oceanographic &amp; Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).&nbsp; Earlier this month NOAA released&nbsp; an economics report (see link below) that said the 2015 economic impact of the Rhode Island commercial seafood industry was approximately $290-million in sales, $105-million in income, $147- million in value added to the economy, and the industry supports 4,522 jobs in Rhode Island.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">What was surprising is that recreational fishing has even a greater economic impact on the state.&nbsp; The report said that recreational fishing generated $332-million in sales, $141-million in income, $216-million in value added to the economy, and the industry supports 3,554 jobs.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">A copy of the report titled <i>NOAA’s Fisheries Economics of the U.S. </i>can be found on NOAA’s website at <a href="https://www.st.nmfs.noaa.gov/economics/publications/feus/fisheries_economics_2015/index">https://www.st.nmfs.noaa.gov/economics/publications/feus/fisheries_economics_2015/index</a>. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">The report said that nationally<span style="color: #333333; letter-spacing: .45pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;;"> commercial and recreational fishing generated $208 billion in sales, contributed $97 billion to the gross domestic product and supported 1.6 million full- and part-time jobs in 2015.&nbsp; </span><o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="color: #333333; letter-spacing: .45pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">The four different measures in the report show how fishermen expenditures affect the economy in a region (state or nationwide): sales, income and value-added, and employment. Sales refer to the gross value of all sales by regional businesses affected by an activity, such as commercial or recreational fishing. It includes both the direct sales of the fish landed or those made by the angler and sales made between businesses and households resulting from that original sale. Income includes personal income (wages and salaries) and proprietors’ income (income from self-employment). Value-added is the contribution made to the gross domestic product in a region. Employment is specified on the basis of full-time and part-time jobs supported directly or indirectly by fish sales or the purchases made by anglers. NOAA Fisheries uses a regional impact modeling software, called IMPLAN, to estimate these four types of impacts.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Black sea bass regulations likely to change<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Rhode Island’s black sea bass (BSB) regulations will likely change again becoming a bit more conservative for the later part of the season.&nbsp; Current measures to meet 2017 Recreational Harvest Limits (RHL) for BSB have been revisited by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission based on the overfishing of harvest limits that occurred in the last two months of 2016 (which is referred to as Wave 6).&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">The Wave 6 data indicated a reduction is needed to stay within the 2017 RHL and the Board decided to set the possession limit for wave 6 (November and December of 2017) at five fish in state waters from Rhode Island through New Jersey.&nbsp; The Board said in a release last week, “All other state measures remain unchanged 2016.” <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">So this means we can expect a change in what were tentative 2017 Rhode Island BSB regulations, likely in the later part of the season.&nbsp; The tentative split season regulations for BSB were: three fish/person/day from May 25 to August 31; seven fish/person/day between September 1 through September 21; a closed season when federal waters are closed from September 22 to October 21; and seven fish/person/day from October 22 to December 31. The final State of RI ruling will be reported once it is released, likely sometime in June.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Experimental reefs built at Quonochontaug Pond<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="line-height: 150%;">The RI DEM and the Nature Conservancy have teamed up to develop nine experimental reefs made of recycled surf clam and oyster shell, and then seeding them with live oysters.&nbsp; The idea is that the complex surge will attract marine life, and provide food and shelter for juvenile fish, increasing survival rates.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="line-height: 150%;">State and Nature Conservancy scientists say the aim of the multiyear project is to&nbsp; find out whether constructing oyster reefs in shallow coastal areas can improve the growth and survival of early life stages of recreationally important fish such as black sea bass, tautog, striped bass, scup, summer flounder, and winter flounder. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="line-height: 150%;">“Research in the Gulf of Mexico and Mid-Atlantic region has shown that constructing oyster reefs can increase fish and invertebrate biomass, as well as the growth and survival of recreationally important fish species,” said Eric Schneider, Principal Marine Biologist, for RI DEM Marine Fisheries. “Considering the former research and that current oyster populations in Rhode Island are less than 10% of those from the mid-1900s, we believe that enhancing this ecologically important habitat will benefit local fish communities and anglers. Rhode Island’s coastal waters offer many fantastic opportunities for anglers to enjoy the diversity and abundance of our local catch.” <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="line-height: 150%;">The Nature Conservancy and RI DEM pooled their resources to fund this project, with support from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s <a href="https://wsfrprograms.fws.gov/subpages/grantprograms/sfr/sfr.htm">Sport Fish Restoration Program</a> and many individual donors.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><b>Where’s the bite<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><b>Freshwater </b>fishing for largemouth bass has been very good. With anglers catching some very large fish in lakes and ponds in Rhode Island.” said John Lavallee of Continental Bait &amp; Tackle, Cranston.&nbsp; John Littlefield of Archie’s Bait &amp; Tackle, Riverside said, “The trout bite has been good in the six ponds DEM restocked and particularly good at Willet Avenue Pond where one customer landing four nice fish in a couple of hours.”<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><b>Striped bass</b>fishing is starting to explode in the East Passage of Narragansett Bay from Mt. Hope Bay and Popasquash Point, Bristol all the way up the Providence River to the Hurricane Barrier. Schools of Atlantic menhaden have made their presence known in the East Passage. “Customer Rocco Patriarca landed a plump 35 pound fish that had four whole Atlantic menhaden in it and one head. The Barrington Bridge is good for bass fishing too with anglers using worms and clam tongue.” said John Littlefield of Archie’s Bait.&nbsp;&nbsp; John Lavallee of Continental Bait said, “The Bay is lighting up with pogies and anglers are catching fish.&nbsp; Live lining Atlantic menhaden seems to be working better than using chunks of menhaden.&nbsp; Customers are catching a lot of smaller keepers in the 30” range at the Barrington Bridge and Collier Park.”&nbsp; Manny Macedo of Lucky Bait &amp; Tackle, Warren said, “One customer caught a 34 pound striper off Colt State Park with a lot of school bass and keepers mixed in on the Warren River and off Bristol.” Matt Conti of Snug Harbor Marina, South Kingstown,&nbsp; said, “Last week we had a lot of fish being caught off the beaches in the 28” to 32” range but at the end of last week they seemed to have moved into the Bay over the weekend.”<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><b>Tautog</b> fishing reports are mixed.&nbsp; Some anglers are finding the fish and catching there limit, three fish/person/day and others are not catching many at all.&nbsp; Overall it has been a very slow spring tautog season.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"> </div><div class="MsoNormal"><b>Summer flounder</b>(fluke) have started to make themselves known.&nbsp; “Anglers are catching keeper size fish south of Block Island and some fishermen are starting to catch them along the southern coastal shore.” said Matt Conti of Snug Harbor Marina. Manny Macedo of Lucky Bait said, “A 21” fluke was landed at the mouth of the Sakonnet River this past week so the bite there is just starting.”<o:p></o:p></div>Captain Dave Montihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16831022398407972345noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1441293999360934440.post-16445134862236054142017-05-06T06:28:00.000-07:002017-05-06T06:28:35.642-07:00Free Fishing Weekend for freshwater anglers<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-U8iJGpr2fho/WQ3NsD9IBQI/AAAAAAAACE4/JdiCbpMIbOk2X7vHsBFz_c8PoWoRy2PvQCLcB/s1600/JM%2Bwith%2BGolden%2BTrout%2B-%2BPhoto%2BA.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="313" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-U8iJGpr2fho/WQ3NsD9IBQI/AAAAAAAACE4/JdiCbpMIbOk2X7vHsBFz_c8PoWoRy2PvQCLcB/s320/JM%2Bwith%2BGolden%2BTrout%2B-%2BPhoto%2BA.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="Default" style="line-height: 150%;"><i>John Migliori with a 12” golden trout he caught at Melville Pond, Portsmouth.&nbsp; <span style="font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Take a picture with your golden trout and send it to <a href="mailto:Jessica.pena@dem.ri.gov">Jessica.pena@dem.ri.gov</a>to receive a golden trout pin.</span></i><o:p></o:p></div><div class="Default" style="line-height: 150%;"><i><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%;"><br /></span></i></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Free Fishing Weekend for freshwater anglers<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="Default" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%;">The Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management (DEM) will hold Free Fishing Weekend Saturday, May 6<sup>th</sup> and Sunday, May 7<sup>th</sup>. As part of the event, the public is invited to fish without a fishing license or trout conservation stamp in the state's freshwaters. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="Default" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="Default" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Six local ponds will be stocked with over 6,000 rainbow trout and 4,000 golden trout for the event. Stocked waters include:&nbsp; Peck Pond, Burrillville; Browning Mill Pond, Exeter; Silver Spring Lake, North Kingstown; Upper Melville Pond, Portsmouth; Meadowbrook Pond, Richmond; and Shippee Sawmill Pond, Foster. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="Default" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="Default" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%;">The free fishing program was established in Rhode Island in 1995 as an opportunity to encourage people to experience freshwater fishing as a new outdoor experience and highlight some of Rhode Island’s premier freshwater fishing areas. Anglers who catch a golden trout on free fishing weekend and throughout the season will receive a free golden trout pin. Take a picture of your catch and send it to Jessica Pena at <a href="mailto:Jessica.pena@dem.ri.gov">Jessica.pena@dem.ri.gov</a> . <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="Default" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="Default" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Free fishing weekend does not apply to saltwater fishing. Freshwater fishing regulations on size and limits apply on May 6<sup>th</sup>and May 7th. For more information or to purchase a license, visit <a href="http://www.dem.ri.gov/">www.dem.ri.gov</a>. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>DEM workshop for fishermen nets some good ideas<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">It was about half way thought the commercial fishing workshop Tuesday night at the URI Bay Campus when fisherman John Walker recommended a change in license use regulations that made a lot of sense to most fishermen and Department of Environmental Management (DEM) staff persons in the room.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">The issue was allowing two licensed fishermen fishing on the same vessel to each take their allowable catch limit (this is done now with select species).&nbsp; Walker said, “When you think about the amount of fuel, the added carbon pollution and cost we incur each time we fish it makes a lot of sense to allow two licenses to work one boat… it cuts expenses in half and is a lot safer.” <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Fisherman Greg Duckworth said, “This recommendation makes a lot of sense to me, whatever we have to do to make it work should be explored.” DEM is taking the suggestion under advisement and will explore if and how such a change could be implemented.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Another proposed regulation discussed at the meeting was a regulation similar to one that exists now for lobster pots.&nbsp; The regulation would prevent all pots such as eel and crab pots from being raised an hour after sunset and more than an hour before sunrise.&nbsp; The aim of the proposal would be to prevent poaching, however, fishermen felt the regulation would be restrictive as some fishermen now raise their pots early morning to sell crabs, or set them a dusk, etc. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Workshops such as the one held Tuesday night are designed to seek fishermen input on regulations.&nbsp; Regulations and proposals discussed will be explored further and presented at a public hearing in June.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Al Gag tackle demonstration at Ocean State<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Ocean State Tackle, Providence will have Al Gag of Al Gag’s Fishing Lures at their store for a demonstration on Sunday, May 7 from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.&nbsp; Meet the inventor of the Whip-It Eel and the Whip-It Fish and learn how to fish the lures.&nbsp; For information contact Dave Henault at 401. 749.3474.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>8<sup>th</sup> Annual Customer Appreciation Day<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Lucky Bait &amp; Tackle, Warren, RI will be celebrating their 8<sup>th</sup> Annual Customer Appreciation Day on Saturday, May 13<sup>th</sup>.&nbsp; Manny Macedo of Lucky Bait said, “We plan on having a number of reps on hand from a variety of manufacturers (Penn, Calcutta and a host of others). And, we will be having our traditional pig roast for customers.”&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;"><b>Two quahog transplants… May 10<sup>th</sup> and May 11<sup>th<o:p></o:p></sup></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">Two quahog transplants will take place this month.&nbsp; This is the program that uses local quahogers to dig quahogs out of restricted areas and move them to clean waters. On Wednesday, May 10<sup>th</sup> a transplant will take place at Greenwich Cove and Thursday, May 11<sup>th</sup> a transplant will take place at Bristol Harbor, starting at the Independence Park boat ramp.&nbsp; Licensed commercial shellfishermen will be paid $7/50 pound bag and those assisting with dumping $10/50 pound bad.&nbsp; Both transplants will take place from 8:00 a.m. to 12 noon.<b><o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">Shellfishermen should report to the on-site DEM enforcement patrol boat by 8:00 a.m. on the day of the transplant.&nbsp; The shellfish transplant program is a cooperative effort between DEM, the Narragansett Bay Commission, the shellfish industry, and the RI Department of Health. 2017 transplant funding is provided by the Narragansett Bay Commission.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Where’s the Bite<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Freshwater </b>fishing continues to be very strong with anglers catching large and smallmouth bass.&nbsp; The trout bite is expected to improve this weekend with DEM stocking ponds with trout and golden trout for Free Fishing weekend. See above article for ponds to be stocked or visit <a href="http://www.dem.ri.gov/">www.dem.ri.gov</a> .&nbsp;&nbsp; Mike Wade of Watch Hill Outfitters, Westerly said, “Trout fishing in DEM stocked ponds is still great and customers are catching bass and pike in Chapman Pond (Westerly).”&nbsp; Dave Henault of Ocean State Tackle, Providence said, “Ronnie Lippe caught a 26 pound carp in East Providence using pop-up baits.”<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Tautog </b>fishing has improved this week in the Bay with anglers catching keepers with shorts mixed in; however, fishing along the southern coastal shore was not good.&nbsp; “Tautog fishing is good in RI but anglers have been keeping their fishing success to themselves as is the case in the spring time, but we know they are catching keepers somewhere." said Mike Wade of Watch Hill Outfitters. Matt Conti of Snug Harbor Marina, South Kingstown, said, “Spring fishing locations in water 15 to 25 feet has just not been good in South County.”&nbsp; I fished with two anglers Saturday in the Newport and Jamestown area and had a very slow pick with two keepers and three shorts.&nbsp; “Capt. Billy Silvia caught his commercial limit of tautog at Ohio Ledge this week.” said Dave Henault of Ocean State Tackle. Manny Macedo of Lucky Bait &amp; Tackle, Warren said, “We received reports of keeper tautog being caught off Newport, and all along Water Street but there are a lot of shorts mixed in.”&nbsp; Joe Palmer of Quaker Lane Bait &amp; Tackle said, “No major reports of blackfish being caught yet.”<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Striped bass </b>fishing in Southern, RI is exploding.&nbsp; Matt Conti of Snug Harbor said, “Bass fishing is phenomenal.&nbsp; A customer caught a 31” fish off the West Wall (Harbor of Refuge) this weekend with school bass being caught in mass at the Wall and on Matunuck and Charlestown beaches.&nbsp; The ponds in Charlestown, Ninigret and Narrow River are all hot too.”&nbsp; Anglers have caught as many as twenty school bass on an outing in Greenwich Cove (spreading to Apponaug Cove in Warwick too). “School bass with keeper bass mixed in are being caught everywhere including the Warren River, Kicketmuit River and all the way up to Pawtucket.” said Many Macedo of Lucky Bait &amp; Tackle.&nbsp; “We have a lot of school bass in the 14" to 15” range being caught but no reports of keepers really arriving yet.” said Mike Wade of Watch Hill Outfitters.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></div><div class="Default" style="line-height: 150%;"> </div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>“Squid </b>fishing is hit or miss with anglers catching as much as ½ bucket (a five gallon pail) fishing in the Newport and Jamestown.” said Manny Macedo.&nbsp; “The squid are in and out depending on the day in Rhode Island with large numbers being taken in Hyannis, MA.” said Dave Henault of Ocean State.<o:p></o:p></div>Captain Dave Montihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16831022398407972345noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1441293999360934440.post-18488542468288190832017-05-06T06:18:00.000-07:002017-05-06T06:18:14.985-07:00Bills in Congress put fish at risk<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-YWY4r8d6Sqc/WQ3KoZYL2WI/AAAAAAAACEo/atrs3vSz5ks99OvlkSihKAnt4CQcRvMywCLcB/s1600/Pawtuxet%2BRiver%2BBass%2B-%2BPhoto%2BC.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-YWY4r8d6Sqc/WQ3KoZYL2WI/AAAAAAAACEo/atrs3vSz5ks99OvlkSihKAnt4CQcRvMywCLcB/s320/Pawtuxet%2BRiver%2BBass%2B-%2BPhoto%2BC.jpg" width="292" /></a></div>&nbsp;<span style="background-color: white;"><i>Dareus Boragine of Cranston (and an associate at The Tackle Box in Warwick) with a 3 lb. 1 once bass he caught in the Pawtuxet River last weekend.</i></span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b> <o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-piz0YUKURiA/WQ3KvW-xMNI/AAAAAAAACEs/yY8gGz-LGxsDWjucIf9FlTKYGVrrAEIbQCLcB/s1600/Fish%2Badvocates%2B-%2BPhoto%2BA%2B1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-piz0YUKURiA/WQ3KvW-xMNI/AAAAAAAACEs/yY8gGz-LGxsDWjucIf9FlTKYGVrrAEIbQCLcB/s320/Fish%2Badvocates%2B-%2BPhoto%2BA%2B1.jpg" width="314" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><i><b>Fish advocates</b>:&nbsp; Capt. Dave Monti of Warwick, RI and Patrick Paquette of Hyannis, MA visited Capitol Hill last week to advocate for the fish and recreational fishing.&nbsp;</i><o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><i><br /></i></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Bills in Congress put fish at risk<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">I was in Washington, DC this week with fishermen throughout the country advocating for the fish.&nbsp; The fishermen I was with met with Rhode Island and Massachusetts senate and congressional offices to gain their insight and update them on important fisheries issues.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">The Rhode Island senators and congressmen do a good job when it comes to fisheries.&nbsp; In fact Senators Reed and Whitehouse have been on the forefront of not only fisheries issues but important related climate change issues such as rising water and erosion of our coastline, warming water and its impact on fish and fishing. We are in good hands in Washington.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Key issues discussed included the impact of recreational fishing.&nbsp; According to a NOAA study, recreational fishing has a $200-million dollar annual economic impact on the State of Rhode Island.&nbsp; However, three bills introduced in congress (with versions soon to be introduced in the senate) would have a major long term impact on both commercial and recreational fishing.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">House bill H.R. 200,&nbsp; introduced by Representative Young (Alaska) and H.R. 2023, introduced by Representative Graves (Louisiana) would both liberalize the Magnuson-Stevens Act (the fishing law of this nation) allowing more fish to be taken out of the ocean for the short term financial gain of some.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">These short term gains would be possible by eliminating the need for Allowable Catch Limits (ACLs) on rebuilt fish stocks.&nbsp; A quick assessment shows that if these bills passed, possibly all but 30 of 400 species would have Allowable Catch Limits.&nbsp; Fish stocks have been rebuilt in this nation in part due to Allowable Catch Limits.&nbsp; To eliminate them on stocks that have rebuilt could take away the gains we have made to rebuild stocks and allow species to become overfished before catch limits can be put back in place.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">These bills do not put fish first, they do not grow fish to abundance for all to catch and eat but rather put fish stocks at risk for overfishing making them available for short term gain for some.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>New Jersey summer flounder bill<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">New Jersey Congressmen<span style="color: #1a2a37; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"> LoBiondo and Pallone sponsored a bill H.R. 1411 that would prevent NOAA Fisheries (NMFS) from implementing regulations that would reduce summer flounder harvest limits.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="color: #1a2a37; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Summer flounder spawning stock has been down for six years in a row and coastwide anglers have overfished. With this declining biomass and overfishing the Atlantic Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) that regulates summer flounder coastwide found it necessary to reduce commercial and recreational harvest levels by about 30% in 2017.<i> <o:p></o:p></i></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">The Magnusson-Stevens Act has given NOAA Fisheries the authority to manage the fish to grow them to abundance for all.&nbsp; Under this federal fishing law over 40 fish stocks have been rebuilt. Weakening Federal fishing laws would allow states motivated by self-interests and short term gains to manage fish with their best interest at heart and not the best interest of the country or the fish.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">More to come as these Bills and others if they develop further in Congress.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Snug Harbor used tackle sale this weekend</b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><o:p></o:p></b>Snug Harbor Marina, South Kingstown, will hold its annual Used Tackle Sale event on Saturday, April 29, 9:00 a.m.&nbsp; The shop will be open for the season starting Sunday from 6:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. every day. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">Rods, reels, combos, gaffs and lures are just some of the equipment you are likely to find at the Sale.&nbsp; Sell or buy used gear or update your tackle with new equipment.&nbsp; Elisa Cahill of Sung Harbor said, “<span style="color: #1a2a37; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;">It’s a great opportunity to sell items and upgrade to some new technology. The way the sale works is that if you sell your used tackle at our sale you give us a 20% commission, or you can use 100% of the sale price towards new equipment you buy from us.&nbsp; We ask that anglers ideally get their “for sale gear” to us before Saturday so we have ample time to get it ready for the Sale.”&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;"><span style="color: #1a2a37; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;">For information call 401.783.7766.&nbsp; Snug Harbor Marina is at 410 Gooseberry Road, South Kingstown.</span> <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Where’s the bite<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>“Freshwater </b>fishing for trout is starting to taper off as ponds and lakes stocked by DEM are starting to get fished out a bit like Willet Avenue in Riverside.” said John Littlefield of Archie’s Bait &amp; Tackle.&nbsp; DEM is scheduled to restock select ponds with trout (and golden Gold Trout) in time for <i>Free Fishing Weekend</i>May 6<sup>th</sup> and 7<sup>th</sup>.&nbsp; However, fishing for other species such as largemouth and smallmouth bass has been good. Angler Dareus Boragine fished the Stafford Pond, Tiverton this week and landed a three pound smallmouth bass using a Dirty Jig.&nbsp; He fished Spectacle Lake near his home and landed a nice carp this week too.”&nbsp; Dave Henault of Ocean State Tackle said, “Trout fishing continues to be good with large fish 17 to 20 “ being caught at Only Pond, Lincoln and Silver Spring Lake in South County.”<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Tautog </b>fishing is receiving mixed reviews.&nbsp; Most anglers and bait shop owners are reporting a very slow bite.&nbsp; However, some customers of the Tackle Box in Warwick are landing fish.&nbsp; Dareus Boragine of Cranston, a sales associate at the Tackle Box, said, “We have had keeper tautog caught in the upper reaches of the Providence River and at Jamestown and Newport.”&nbsp; Elisa Cahill of Snug Harbor Marina said, “We have sold some crabs but have no reports of fish being landed.”&nbsp; Ken Landry of Ray’s Bait &amp; Tackle said, “Customers have had negative results tautog fishing, no one has reported catching anything.” John Littlefield of Archie’s Bait &amp; Tackle said, “Three customers fished the Conimicut Light area this week and had no luck.&nbsp; They caught one short fish.&nbsp; Others fishing the Wharf Tavern from shore got no bites at all.”&nbsp; The hope is that the tautog bite will improve with the warm weather this week.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Striped bass</b> fishing for school striped bass has been fair.&nbsp; John Littlefield of Archie’s Bait &amp; Tackle, said, “Customers have caught striped bass in the upper portions of the Providence River.”&nbsp; “School striped bass are in the lower Bay, just north of the bridges out in front to Allen’s Harbor but the fish have not worked their way in mass into Apponaug or East Greenwich Coves yet.” said Ken Landry of Ray’s Bait &amp; Tackle.&nbsp; Elisa Cahill said, “There have been more fish on the West Wall (of the Harbor of Refuge) this week and they have been getting larger but it is still hit or miss depending on the day that you fish.” &nbsp;This week Csin and Omar Curi hooked up with school bass to 25” in Greenwich Cove this week.&nbsp; They were using jumping minnow lures.” said Dave Henault of Ocean State Tackle.&nbsp; Fly fishing expert Joe Lombardo said, “W<span style="color: #1a2a37; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;; mso-fareast-font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;">e fished the Narrow River Saturday and Sunday and found good numbers of striped bass. These fish where not resident fish but fresh ocean bass. Not only&nbsp;good numbers of fish but some of these bass where in the 20” class, very nice on 7 &amp; 8wt fly rods. We also caught white perch anywhere from 8” to 12” great bait for the bass along with the blueback herring and alewife’s running the river now. I used a streamer that was a good 5 to 6” long to mimic the white perch. This fly was tied with yellow over olive colored craft fur with a little gold flashabou between both colors. Intermediate fly lines work well.”<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"> </div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Cod</b> fishing was off this week.&nbsp; Still a lot of bait on the fishing grounds so party boat captains fishing for cod are optimistic.<o:p></o:p></div>Captain Dave Montihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16831022398407972345noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1441293999360934440.post-10201861860141472062017-04-22T07:39:00.000-07:002017-04-22T07:39:29.483-07:00Tautog fishing tips from the experts<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UxYoKC4I6SU/WPtnQNmxPuI/AAAAAAAACDg/h3v_XN6lag4nQfmWMHgr7u9bYbdMZ0JrgCLcB/s1600/Melville%2B1st%2BCast%2BJohn%2BM%2B-%2BPhoto%2BG.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><i><img border="0" height="305" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UxYoKC4I6SU/WPtnQNmxPuI/AAAAAAAACDg/h3v_XN6lag4nQfmWMHgr7u9bYbdMZ0JrgCLcB/s320/Melville%2B1st%2BCast%2BJohn%2BM%2B-%2BPhoto%2BG.jpg" width="320" /></i></a></div><i>&nbsp;<span style="background-color: white;">John Migliori caught his first trout of the season Monday at Melville Pond, Portsmouth on his first cast and then went on to limit out using a spinner bait. Trout fishing is still very good and less crowded.</span></i><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="background: white; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-DruUcvSr9Ck/WPtnUdD0ADI/AAAAAAAACDk/lC5LB-LCK9kYPICi-1_g-0r2ZFJR1exRQCLcB/s1600/Tim%2BJacobs%2Bof%2BRichmond%2B-%2BPhoto%2BE.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-DruUcvSr9Ck/WPtnUdD0ADI/AAAAAAAACDk/lC5LB-LCK9kYPICi-1_g-0r2ZFJR1exRQCLcB/s320/Tim%2BJacobs%2Bof%2BRichmond%2B-%2BPhoto%2BE.JPG" width="275" /></a></div><i>&nbsp;<b><span style="background: white; color: #1d2129;">Slow retrieve worked:</span></b><span style="background: white; color: #1d2129;"> At 2:00 p.m. on opening day Tim Jacobs of Richmond had little trouble reeling in rainbow trout using a trout spinner bait with a slow retrieve.</span></i><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="background: white; color: #1d2129;"><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UwM9ABJpVP8/WPtnXo-3YPI/AAAAAAAACDo/3w0OP_PBFnkijukyeQ5TrZ4g6rk6_isngCLcB/s1600/Jason%2BHowell%2Bbass%2B-%2BPhoto%2BG%2Bv2.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UwM9ABJpVP8/WPtnXo-3YPI/AAAAAAAACDo/3w0OP_PBFnkijukyeQ5TrZ4g6rk6_isngCLcB/s320/Jason%2BHowell%2Bbass%2B-%2BPhoto%2BG%2Bv2.png" width="313" /></a></div><i>&nbsp;<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129;">Jason Howell of Narragansett hooked up with school striped bass at Narrow River.</span></i><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="background: white; color: #1d2129;"><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Tc7otNQlDFA/WPtnnhs_VuI/AAAAAAAACDs/__t1Ev9CMBgaJ7sZhIoK-kQCfnMiFn2ygCLcB/s1600/SB%2Btautog%2B-%2Bphoto%2BE.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="192" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Tc7otNQlDFA/WPtnnhs_VuI/AAAAAAAACDs/__t1Ev9CMBgaJ7sZhIoK-kQCfnMiFn2ygCLcB/s320/SB%2Btautog%2B-%2Bphoto%2BE.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="background: white; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><i>Steve Brustein of Portland, Maine with a spring tautog he caught last year in Narragansett Bay.</i><b><o:p></o:p></b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-top: 12.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><b>Tautog fishing tips from the experts </b><o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-top: 12.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="Default" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-fareast-font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;;">The spring tautog season opened April 15 and runs through May 31 with a three fish/person/day limit and a ten fish per boat limit (does not apply to charter boats). Tautog fishing is fun and there’s a certain knack to it as it takes a lot of concentration and a quick hook set.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="Default" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="Default" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-fareast-font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;;">Here are some of my favorite tautog fishing tips I’ve learned from the experts.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="Default" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="Default" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 12.15pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: &quot;symbol&quot;; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%;">·<span style="font-family: &quot;times new roman&quot;; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="color: windowtext; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Keep rig simple to reduce tie ups, I prefer an egg sinker rig with one hook extended below the sinker on a swivel, or a one hook conventional rig with a dropper loop and sinker<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="Default" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 12.15pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: &quot;symbol&quot;; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%;">·<span style="font-family: &quot;times new roman&quot;; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="color: windowtext; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Anchor over or near structure, and fish the entire boat or area, even casting a bit as tautog are territorial, a few feet make a difference, also let anchor line in and out to change position <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="Default" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 12.15pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: &quot;symbol&quot;; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%;">·<span style="font-family: &quot;times new roman&quot;; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="color: windowtext; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Be prepared to chum as needed, I use a mixture of cut-up sea clams and crushed crabs<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="Default" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 5.45pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: &quot;symbol&quot;; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%;">·<span style="font-family: &quot;times new roman&quot;; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="color: windowtext; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">I use </span><span style="color: windowtext; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%;">40 to 50 pound braid line to enhance a direct connection to the fish and the line does not stretch when the fish tries to run back into structure, my fishing rod is a medium action rod <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="Default" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 5.45pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: &quot;symbol&quot;; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%;">·<span style="font-family: &quot;times new roman&quot;; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="color: windowtext; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Your rig should be on the bottom, be patient, pay attention and be prepared to set hook quickly<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="Default" style="line-height: 150%; margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: &quot;symbol&quot;; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%;">·<span style="font-family: &quot;times new roman&quot;; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="color: windowtext; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Be prepared to fish different types of rigs and bait presentations depending on conditions and what fish want i.e. jigs with bait, green crabs as bait, Asian crabs, conventional rigs, etc.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="Default" style="line-height: 150%; margin-left: .5in;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;"><b>Fishermen sought to serve as independent representatives <o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">Deepwater Wind, developer of the Block Island Wind Farm, is looking for at least two Rhode Island fishermen to serve as independent representatives of the local fishing fleet in connection with the development of the South Fork Wind Farm at Cox’s Ledge.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">The independent fishing representatives from both the commercial and recreational sectors will help disseminate information to the fishing community and help facilitate communication between fishermen and Deepwater Wind. They will also serve as the primary point of contact for any area fishermen with questions or concerns about the offshore wind farm or transmission cable. This is a great opportunity for those active in commercial or recreational fishing as these representatives will serve as an important link between Deepwater Wind and the fishing community.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">Interested fishermen with home ports at Point Judith or elsewhere in Rhode Island should visit <span style="color: blue; mso-bidi-font-family: TimesNewRomanPSMT;"><a href="http://www.dwwind.com/fishing-reps">www.dwwind.com/fishing-reps</a>&nbsp; </span>for more information. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">With this late notice in the Providence Journal I called Aileen Kenney, vice president of permitting &amp; environmental for Deep Water Wind. &nbsp;Ms. Kenney said, “We ask that applicants forward cover letters and resumes as close to the April 21 deadline as possible via mail or email.”&nbsp; &nbsp;<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Fishing for a Cause Tournament<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="color: #1a2a37; mso-fareast-font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;;">The 7<sup>th</sup> annual Schwartz Center/Meeting Street<i> Fishing for a Cause</i> <i>Tournament</i>to raise money for students with special needs is now registering fishing participants and dinner guests for their June 23<sup>rd</sup> and 24<sup>th</sup>fundraiser.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-top: 12.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">Charter captains are offering their vessels and personal skills as fishing guides to take participants fishing in the recreational tournament<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><i>Fishing for a Cause</i> has raised more than $800,000 in its history. “The incredible success of this tournament is due to the increase of corporate groups over the past seven years,” said John M. Kelly, President of Meeting Street. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-top: 12.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">More than 100 fishermen and women are expected to participate in the two-day catch and release tournament. Upon the culmination of the tournament participants and guests will gather for a catered seaside dinner in New Bedford emceed by comedian Lenny Clarke <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-top: 12.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">For more information about this year’s event or to donate your vessel and services visit <a href="http://www.meetingstreet.org/FFAC%20">http://www.meetingstreet.org/FFAC</a> or contact Beatriz Oliveira at The Schwartz Center 508-742-6425. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Squid fishing and tube &amp; worm seminar<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">Learn the basics of squid fishing on a party boat from expert angler Tom Wood and then learn the technique of fishing with tube and worm from fishing author and guide Charley Soares on April 24, 7:00 p.m. at the West Warwick Elks Lodge, 60 Clyde Street, West Warwick.&nbsp; “The Rhode Island Saltwater Anglers Association meeting will focus on when to fish deep vs near the top for squid as well as the best squid lures and gear to use.” said Tom Wood. Charles Soares said, “The uniqueness of the tube and worm is that it catches numerous species along with stripers from five to fifty ponds.”&nbsp; Non-members welcome with a $10 donation to the RISAA Scholarship Fund, members attend free.&nbsp; Visit <a href="http://www.risaa.org/">www.risaa.org</a>for details.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Where’s the bite<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Freshwater </b>fishing continues to be very strong.&nbsp; “A customer caught a 3.5 pound largemouth bass at Brickyard Pond in Barrington this week.” said John Littlefield of Archie’s Bait &amp; Tackle, Riverside.&nbsp; “Anglers are doing very well with largemouth bass, we sold a lot of shiners this weekend.” said Craig Mancini of Continental Bait &amp; Tackle, Cranston.&nbsp; Mancini said, “Trout fishing has been better than it has been in a long time.&nbsp; Mike Cardinal of Cardinal Bait &amp; Tackle, Westerly said, “Trout fishing at Carolina Trout Pond and Meadowbrook Pond (both in Richmond) has been great but the rivers have been a bit too high for anglers.”&nbsp; John Littlefield of Archie’s Bait &amp; Tackle said, “Opening Day’s weather discouraged some anglers from fishing so Willet Avenue Pond, Riverside is still holding a lot of fish with anglers limiting out there."&nbsp; “Trout fishing is very good at Melville in Portsmouth.&nbsp; PowerBait is the bait of choice with spoons working good at Lincoln Woods for one customer.” said Manny Macedo of Lucky Bait &amp; Tackle, Warren.&nbsp; Gil Bell of Charlestown caught a four pound, 25” chain pickerel at Watchaug Pond, Charlestown last week using a Sutton Frisby Spoon.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Tautog </b>fishing season opened up Saturday, April 15.&nbsp; Some anglers target them this weekend with poor results as it was quite windy this weekend.&nbsp; Mike Cardinal of Cardinal Bait &amp; Tackle said, “We did not have many customers target tautog, things should get going later this week.”&nbsp; Many Macedo of Lucky Bait &amp; Tackle, Warren said, “Customers targeted tautog at Stone Bridge, Wharf Tavern and other places but did not get a bite.”&nbsp; Fishing further up the Bay was not good either, John Littlefield of Archie’s Bait &amp; Tackle said, “A customer fished the Nayatt Point area for tautog but the wind picked up and he came back, he had a cold of good bites but no fish.&nbsp; Others targeted Wharf Tavern, Jamestown and Newport but we haven’t back from them yet."<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Striped bass</b> fishing has not been very active.&nbsp;&nbsp; “Things have not started to percolate yet in the salt ponds.&nbsp; Once the worm hatches start the striped bass will start to come around in mass.&nbsp; We have had a few reports of schoolies being caught but I am not sure they are new bass or just hold-overs from last year.” said Mike Cardinal of Cardinal Bait &amp; tackle.&nbsp; Elisa Cahill of Snug Harbor Marina, South Kingstown said, “Angers are catching fish at the West Wall but it is still spotty.&nbsp; Fish are still being taken in the Narrow River, Narragansett but these fish are likely striped bass hold-overs from last year.”&nbsp; Dave Henault said, “Capt. Billy Silvia (while quahogging) saw about 20 striped bass move though Ohio Ledge on Tuesday. So the bass are in the Bay.&nbsp; Striped bass fishing at the West Wall of the Harbor of Refuge in South Kingstown has been spotty.&nbsp; Tuesday was a good day there by Wednesday morning with a change of wind was not good. Angler Jay Uhlman caught a nice size school bass at the Goat Island Causeway in Newport Tuesday night when squid fishing.&nbsp; He caught seven squid that night.”<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Cod</b> fishing is still slow but picking up.&nbsp; The hope is that the volume of bait seen on the fishing grounds will continue to attract fish.&nbsp;&nbsp; Elisa Cahill of Snug Harbor Marina said, “Cod fishing is hit or miss.&nbsp; One customer fished the south side of Cox’s Ledge with two friends and came back with 30 nice fish, yet other have come back with one or two fish.&nbsp; You just have to be in the right place at the right time.”&nbsp;<o:p></o:p></div><br />Captain Dave Montihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16831022398407972345noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1441293999360934440.post-37537824784244899622017-04-22T07:20:00.002-07:002017-04-22T07:20:28.321-07:00Spring fishing is hot… time to cast a line<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Z8ypPbVMOq8/WPtimfikPuI/AAAAAAAACDE/VGZUnFlYvDY5w_bOhNyBSduni_Crs0KMwCLcB/s1600/Mike%2BL%2BOlney%2BPond%2B-%2BPhoto%2BA.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Z8ypPbVMOq8/WPtimfikPuI/AAAAAAAACDE/VGZUnFlYvDY5w_bOhNyBSduni_Crs0KMwCLcB/s320/Mike%2BL%2BOlney%2BPond%2B-%2BPhoto%2BA.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>&nbsp;<span style="background-color: white;"><i>Michael Laboissioniere of North Providence&nbsp;with a 2 pound trout he caught at Olney Pond, Lincoln.</i></span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="background: white; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><b><o:p></o:p></b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Eh8vmYUt_-k/WPtiq307-2I/AAAAAAAACDI/-q-QycUV200oQzTn-4b7UUYxyGu_b5-UQCLcB/s1600/Power%2BBait%2Bworking%2B-%2BPhoto%2BB.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Eh8vmYUt_-k/WPtiq307-2I/AAAAAAAACDI/-q-QycUV200oQzTn-4b7UUYxyGu_b5-UQCLcB/s320/Power%2BBait%2Bworking%2B-%2BPhoto%2BB.jpg" width="256" /></a></div><i><span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129;">Alicia DeAngelis caught her limit of trout (five fish) in just a couple of hours at Silver Spring Lake, North Kingstown.</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129;">&nbsp; </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129;">“She used&nbsp;PowerBait fished on size 14 snelled treble hooks eighteen inches above a bass sinker.” said Dave Henault of Ocean State Tackle.&nbsp;</span></i><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="background: white; color: #1d2129; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jQV5erhNtNo/WPti0mZzt0I/AAAAAAAACDQ/zsEme3D6AmA7KY9POb2jSbsjh2zg-ZHVACLcB/s1600/Rich%2BAndrews%2B27%2Binch%2Btrout%2B-%2BPhoto%2BC%2B%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="311" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jQV5erhNtNo/WPti0mZzt0I/AAAAAAAACDQ/zsEme3D6AmA7KY9POb2jSbsjh2zg-ZHVACLcB/s320/Rich%2BAndrews%2B27%2Binch%2Btrout%2B-%2BPhoto%2BC%2B%25282%2529.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>&nbsp;<i><span style="background-color: white;">Rich Andrews with a 27”, three pound trout he caught opening day.</span><span style="background-color: white;">&nbsp; </span><span style="background-color: white;">Trout seemed larger this year.</span></i><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="background: white; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-MSb37-NYEUo/WPti41kNs5I/AAAAAAAACDU/jSrlSkIYLrYaDg4wObOn6sj049P0N9BxwCLcB/s1600/RI%2BParty%2B%2526%2BCharter%2B-%2BPhoto%2BF%2B%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><i><img border="0" height="206" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-MSb37-NYEUo/WPti41kNs5I/AAAAAAAACDU/jSrlSkIYLrYaDg4wObOn6sj049P0N9BxwCLcB/s320/RI%2BParty%2B%2526%2BCharter%2B-%2BPhoto%2BF%2B%25282%2529.JPG" width="320" /></i></a></div><i><span style="background-color: white;">The RI Party &amp; Charter Boat Association donated cash and canned goods to the Johnnycake Center food bank as part of their annual meeting Sunday at Spain’s Restaurant, Narragansett.</span><span style="background-color: white;">&nbsp; </span><span style="background-color: white;">In photo:</span><span style="background-color: white;">&nbsp; </span><span style="background-color: white;">Captains John Rainone, past board president; Steve Anderson, vice president; Andy Dangelo, treasure; Paul Johnson, secretary and Rick Bellavance, president.</span></i><span style="background-color: white;"><i>&nbsp;</i>&nbsp;</span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="background: white; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-o5VMwnPAkzY/WPtiSlc3TpI/AAAAAAAACC8/aJ4CIE2oXZUnJk-TJYQHWFSKASW6MVNNACEw/s1600/John%2BSoloyna%2Bof%2BWarwick%2B-%2BPhoto%2BD.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="258" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-o5VMwnPAkzY/WPtiSlc3TpI/AAAAAAAACC8/aJ4CIE2oXZUnJk-TJYQHWFSKASW6MVNNACEw/s320/John%2BSoloyna%2Bof%2BWarwick%2B-%2BPhoto%2BD.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><span style="background: white; color: #1d2129; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><i>Late start OK:</i></span></b><span style="background: white; color: #1d2129; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><i> John Soloyna of Warwick caught this rainbow and brown trout within an hour after he started to fish around noon Saturday.</i><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="background: white; color: #1d2129; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><i><br /></i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Spring fishing is hot… time to cast a line<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">It’s spring and the fishing is great. Opening day of the freshwater fishing season was a big hit, tautog season opens Saturday, April 15 and anglers are catching school striped bass in southern Rhode Island saltwater ponds, coves and rivers.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Tautog season opens <o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">Tautog fishing is fun.&nbsp; I like to relax with friends and family, shoot the breeze and enjoy a great Rhode Island fishery all at the same time.&nbsp; Tautog (or Blackfish) is a great eating fish too with a dense whitish meat.&nbsp; The Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management (DEM) regulates tautog fishing with three seasons.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">The spring tautog season opens Saturday, April 15 and ends May 31 with a three fish/person/day limit; fishing reopens August 1 to October 14 with a three fish/person/day limit; and then the late fall/winter season runs from October 15 to December 15 with a six fish/person/day limit.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">A fishery-wide closure, to protect tautog during their spawning period, is in effect from June 1 to July 31.&nbsp; At all times when the fishery is open, there is a limit of 10 fish/vessel daily limit. Party and charter boats are not subject to the 10 fish/vessel limit.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">You have to be over or near structure (rocks, piers, wrecks, ledge, humps or holes, etc.) to catch tautog so anglers use a number of strategies to ensure their vessel stays in position.&nbsp; The trick is positioning the vessel without getting your anchor stuck in rock.&nbsp; I’ve lost three anchors over the years which can cost as much as $300 to $500 depending on the type of anchor and chain.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">Anglers often use a grappling hook anchor make of rebar to tautog fish. The soft rods allow the anchor to bend if it should get caught in structure. &nbsp;Capt. Sherriff said, “Another method used by anglers is to tie a line to the end of their Danforth or grappling hook anchor (opposite the chain end) and attach a float to the other end of the line”.&nbsp; When ready to leave they pick up the float and line which pulls the anchor out of the structure the same way it went in. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">I use an anchor retrieval system (<a href="http://www.westmarine.com/">www.westmarine.com</a> ) which cost about $100.&nbsp; A float on a six foot line is attached to your anchor line with a sliding metal ring.&nbsp; When the vessel is pulled forward toward and beyond the anchor the ring eventually works its way down to the anchor and the float brings the anchor to the surface where you can retrieve it off the stern. &nbsp;The trick is not getting the anchor line caught in your prop as you move forward toward and beyond the anchor.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">Another method that worked well for me when I had a smaller center console was the use of a cinder block as an anchor. The cinder block costs about $1.50.&nbsp; However, it often does not hold in strong current or seas and does not work well with large or heavy vessels.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Anchoring over structure takes some practice too. Locate a rock pile with electronics, estimate wind/drift direction and anchor up current from where you want to fish and drift back to the spot as the anchor is setting.&nbsp; Once in position, fish all sides of the boat casting a bit to cover as much area as you can.&nbsp; If still no bites, let some anchor line out a couple of times to change your position, if still no bites it is time to move the vessel.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Watch for more tautog fishing tips next week.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Freshwater season Opening Day big hit<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">If you missed Opening Day Saturday it is OK as there are plenty of fish left to catch.&nbsp; Jeremy Barton of Narragansett said, “There weren’t nearly as many anglers fishing Saturday morning at Silver Spring Lake in North Kingstown but the fishing was very good. And as you can see you have a lot more elbow room fishing from shore.”<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Not only was the fishing good but the size of the stocked trout were larger than usual. Manny Macedo of Lucky Bait &amp; Tackle, Warren said stocking efforts were successful, “We had a father/son and an uncle/ nephew team come in for photographs for our Facebook page.&nbsp; All four of them limited out on trout (five fish/person).&nbsp; Trout fishing was good at Melville Pond, Portsmouth and Willet Avenue Pond, Riverside.” <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="background: white; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">Fishing after the start of opening day did not deter John Soloyna of Warwick who caught a nice rainbow trout and a brown trout in about 60 minutes when he started fishing a 1:00 p.m.&nbsp; And, Tim Jacobs of Richmond who caught two nice rainbow trout at 2:00 p.m. said, “I’m using a trout spinner bait with a very slow retrieve rate.” Soloyna landed two fish in five minutes as I watched him from shore,<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="background: white; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">Visit <a href="http://www.dem.ri.gov/"><span style="color: windowtext;">www.dem.ri.gov</span></a>for licensing information and locations, a list of waterways that have been stocked with trout and details on regulations.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Striped bass coming on strong <o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">On-the-Water magazine’s striped bass migration tracker (<a href="http://www.onthewater.com/striper-migration-map">www.onthewater.com/striper-migration-map</a>) shows school striped bass are working their way north up the Connecticut coastline with keeper fish being caught off New York. Jason Howell of Narragansett fished the Narrow River in Narragansett this weekend and landed school striped bass.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Rhody Fly Rodders meeting<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">The Rhody Fly Rodders will hold their Annual Cookout Get-Together Tuesday, April 18<sup>th</sup>, 6;00 p.m. at the Riverside Sportsmen’s Association, 19 Mohawk Drive, East Providence.&nbsp; Meeting will include fly casting as well as the continuation of the striped bass movie ‘Running the Coast’ that was first shown last month. Flies will be on sale with money donated to 'Project Healing Waters’.&nbsp; Contact Peter Nilsen, president, with questions at <a href="mailto:pdfish@fullchannel.net">pdfish@fullchannel.net</a>.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Where’s the bite<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Striped bass.</b> School striped bass ae being caught in southern coastal ponds and rivers like Narrow River, Narragansett.&nbsp; However, it is early and hard to tell if these are migrating fish or hold-over fish from the winter.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Tautog </b>season opens April 15 (see above article). <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>“Cod fishing</b> has been spotty and the water was cloudy from storms earlier in the week.” said Dianne Valerien of the Seven B’s Party Boat.&nbsp; Capt. Matt Blount of the Frances Fleet said, “We fished last week but the water was still churned up from last weekend's big storm. Fishing was quite slow with a few handfuls of market cod fish up to 8 lbs. However, tons of bait were noted on the local grounds which is always a good sign.”<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="background: white; color: #1d2129; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"> </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Freshwater </b>fishing has been focused on trout and opening day (see above story). However, early signs are that the largemouth bite is good and picking up too.<i> <o:p></o:p></i></div>Captain Dave Montihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16831022398407972345noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1441293999360934440.post-22295073364822898952017-04-02T06:09:00.000-07:002017-04-02T06:58:06.555-07:00Get ready… Opening Day is Saturday, April 8th<div class="MsoNormal"><b><br /></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-tDR9ZOGytB4/WOD2a4Mw0uI/AAAAAAAACCg/e8H5v6arFXcjrvdSkdXno6PWyM5UhHIsACLcB/s1600/Jacob%2BAoyotte%2Bwith%2B26%2Bpounc%2Bcarp%2B-%2BPhoto%2BB.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-tDR9ZOGytB4/WOD2a4Mw0uI/AAAAAAAACCg/e8H5v6arFXcjrvdSkdXno6PWyM5UhHIsACLcB/s320/Jacob%2BAoyotte%2Bwith%2B26%2Bpounc%2Bcarp%2B-%2BPhoto%2BB.png" width="320" /></a></div><i>&nbsp;Jacob Ayotte landed this 26 pound carp and then a 23.9 pound carp last Sunday night using a pineapple soluble bait.</i><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 12.0pt; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><o:p></o:p></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-p2WbD2piL6Y/WOD2dDOR7CI/AAAAAAAACCk/DYFLFllfKPIttHIZN8z4L4_t71cKKHLmACLcB/s1600/Opening%2BDay%2Bat%2BSilver%2BSpring%2BPond%2Bin%2BSouth%2BCounty%2B-%2BPhoto%2BC.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="230" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-p2WbD2piL6Y/WOD2dDOR7CI/AAAAAAAACCk/DYFLFllfKPIttHIZN8z4L4_t71cKKHLmACLcB/s320/Opening%2BDay%2Bat%2BSilver%2BSpring%2BPond%2Bin%2BSouth%2BCounty%2B-%2BPhoto%2BC.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><i>&nbsp;Silver Spring Lake in South County is a favorite spot for families fishing on Opening Day.</i><br /><i><br /></i><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4wuKXNAu8cE/WOD2gXQyJnI/AAAAAAAACCo/GAGgAe5I5Jof7e93DQpUWeRiCDfQ1JqmgCLcB/s1600/Matt%2Bwith%2Bbass%2B-%2BPhoto%2BB.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4wuKXNAu8cE/WOD2gXQyJnI/AAAAAAAACCo/GAGgAe5I5Jof7e93DQpUWeRiCDfQ1JqmgCLcB/s320/Matt%2Bwith%2Bbass%2B-%2BPhoto%2BB.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><i>This 16 pound striped bass was caught by Capt. Rob Taylor's friend Matt (show in picture) just south for the Hurricane Barrier in the Providence River Basin. &nbsp;"The herring were on the surface and the hold-over bass were feeding on them.", said Dave Henault of Ocean State Tackle.</i></div><div class="MsoNormal"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><b>Get ready… Opening Day is Saturday, April 8<sup>th</sup> <o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b>Opening day of the freshwater fishing and trout season is Saturday, April 8<sup>th</sup>.&nbsp; The Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management (DEM) plans to stock 80,000 trout into 100 Rhode Island waterways. &nbsp;New this year, Carbuncle Pond in Coventry will be stocked with brown and rainbow trout.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Lake Tiogue in Coventry will not be stocked this year due to low water issues, and St. Mary’s Pond in Portsmouth will not be stocked. Beginning next fall and into the future, large brown trout will be stocked at Carbuncle Pond in Coventry with the goal of developing this location into a brown trout angling destination. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">On Saturday, April 8, a children’s fishing derby will be held at Pondarosa Park Pond in Little Compton.&nbsp; And on Saturday and Sunday, April 8 and April 9, fishing in Cass Pond in Woonsocket, Slater Park Pond in Pawtucket, and Ponderosa Park Pond in Little Compton will be reserved for children 14 years and under.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: &quot;calibri&quot; , &quot;sans-serif&quot;; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%;">A current fishing license and a Trout Conservation Stamp are required to keep or possess a trout or to fish in a catch-and-release or 'fly-fishing only' area.&nbsp; The daily creel and possession limit for trout is five from April 8, 2017 through November 30, 2017, and two from December 1, 2017 through February 28, 2018.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><br /></div><div style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: &quot;calibri&quot; , &quot;sans-serif&quot;; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Visit <a href="http://www.dem.ri.gov/">www.dem.ri.gov</a> for licensing information, a list of waterways that will be stocked and regulations.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Saltwater fishing from shore<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">The more I learn about fishing, the more I realize that to be successful at it, you need to do your homework.&nbsp; Monday night I was taught how to do my homework to be a successful shore fisherman by two local experts…Peter Jenkins, owner of the Saltwater Edge, Middletown and Capt. Chris Aubut of Aubut Rod Company. Peter is also the Lead Instructor at the Orvis Saltwater Fly Fishing School and an avid surfcaster and fly rod fisherman as the situation dictates<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">“What we look for from shore are edges.&nbsp; What I mean by edges is the change between hi and low water, shadow lines of docks (and bridges) at night, edges of sand bars and banks, and edges of moving and standing water” said Peter Jenkins at the Rhode Island Saltwater Anglers Association meeting to a group of about 180 anglers at the West Warwick Elks Lodge.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Most gamefish, like striped bass for example, set themselves up on edges or near edges to ambush and take advantage of prey (bait) that may be feeding or may be getting tossed or pushed along by moving water, currant and tide. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">“You can learn a lot from the birds… like what type of bait might be in the water that the fish are feeding on.&nbsp; If they are seagulls they can eat large baits, like herring and Atlantic menhaden, if small birds are on bait, such as terns you know they are after smaller bait possibly Bay anchovies as they could not lift large baits.&nbsp; Knowing what bait is in the water helps you target fish with the correct lure." said Jenkins.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Another key tip is to remember that hard structure such as cliffs, rock formations and boulder fields hold bait such as cunner (choggies), black fish (tautog) and scup in the structure at both high and low tides.&nbsp; So these areas can be fished anytime.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">One last tip suggested by Jenkins and Aubut is check out the location you plan to fish during a moon low tide so you can see the contour, where the edges, &nbsp;pools and sand bars are located.&nbsp; “I surf and fish from shore but I got a whole different perspective of what was really under the water where I fish by putting a mask, snorkel and fins on and taking a dip to see what the bottom was like where I fish.&nbsp; I quickly learned why this particular stop usually held fish.&nbsp; The bottom was loaded with an active mussel bed that smaller fish and striped bass would feed on.” said Capt. Aubut.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 12.0pt; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;">Visit <a href="http://www.saltwateredge.com/">www.saltwateredge.com</a>and <a href="http://www.aubutrods.com/">www.aubutrods.com</a> for additional information and fishing tips. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Pre-owned Hinckley Yachts can now be guaranteed <o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Hinckley Yachts of Portsmouth, RI introduced there first Certified Pre-Owned Program last week at an owners rendezvous in Key Largo, Florida.&nbsp;&nbsp; I always stop by the Hinckleys at boat shows as they are the gold standard of luxury yachts.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">The new program offers buyers of previously owned Hinckley Yachts a Certified Pre-Owned (CPO) program that includes extended warranties and the assurance that their purchase bas been factory maintained. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Peter O’Connell, Hinckley CEO said, "Many Hinckleys that reach the used boat market have not only been built by Hinckley, but they have been maintained throughout their life by our own staff. We know these boats, we know that they've been properly serviced, we represent them in the marketplace, so our confidence in them is very high." <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">To qualify for CPO status a Hinckley must have been serviced in the company’s seven service operations, or in a yard authorized to service Hinckley products.&nbsp; Boats then undergo inspection and must be listed for sale with a Hinckley-owned sales office.&nbsp; There is no program cost to the sellers or buyers.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">The first pre-owned Hinckleys are expected to be available this month.&nbsp; For information visit <a href="http://www.hinckleyyachts.com/">www.hinckleyyachts.com</a>.<b> <o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 12.0pt; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b>Where’s the bite<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 12.0pt; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b>Striped bass.</b>&nbsp; “Fishing was off a couple of weeks ago when the water cooled but in February and January we had some good striped bass hold over fishing in the Providence River.&nbsp; One of my customers fishes the Providence River and has caught 40 to 50 school striped bass this winter.” said John Littlefield of Archie’s Bait &amp; Tackle, Riverside.&nbsp; Dave Henault of Ocean State Tackle, Providence said, “Capt. Rob Taylor and his friend Matt targeted striped bass one warm night earlier this week in the Providence River Basin.&nbsp; The herring were active and so were the striped bass.&nbsp; They landed a 34”, 16 pound striped bass along with a number of fish in the 26” to 31” range.”<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 12.0pt; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b>Freshwater fishing.</b>&nbsp; Carp fishing continues to remain strong and with the start of spring carp fishing is getting better.&nbsp; Jacob Ayotte landed a 26 pound carp in a Rhode Island pond using pop-up baits and then he landed a second 23.9 pound fish. He is a carp expert who caught three 30 pound fish last year and is scheduled to start working at Ocean State Tackle next week as our in-house carp expert.” said Dave Henault of Ocean State Tackle.&nbsp; Ayotte said, “Very special fish for me last evening (Sunday) maybe my most significant of the season. I have been home rolling boilies (boiled paste fishing balls) all winter and started baiting them a week and a half ago but the weather has not been cooperating. I had been sticking with a pop-up over the bed (of leaves) as I felt it was my best bet for a bite, however, this weekend showed some more mild weather with light rain. I decided now was a good time to give them a go.&nbsp; Just under two hours in on my second short session using a pineapple soluble my right rod was off and I landed a beautiful 23 pound, 9 once fish.&nbsp; Very, very happy with this one!”<span style="font-family: &quot;helvetica&quot; , &quot;sans-serif&quot;; font-size: 10.5pt; line-height: 150%;">&nbsp; </span><o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 12.0pt; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;">“With no ice to speak of in January and February we have had very little ice fishing.” said Ken Ferrara of Ray’s Bait &amp; Tackle, Warwick. John Littlefield of Archie’s Bait said, “We had some customers ice fish in Rhode Island early in March as the water was colder then than in winter, but it is all over now. We did have a couple of anglers see DEM stocking area ponds with trout for Opening Day, April 8<sup>th</sup>, but nothing at Willett Avenue Pond in Riverside yet.”<o:p></o:p></div><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Cod fishing.</b> Make sure vessels are fishing the day you want to go.&nbsp; Dianne Valerien of the Seven B’s party boat said, “Cod fishing this week as been spotty.”&nbsp; Party boats sailing for cod fish at this time include the Frances Fleet at <a href="http://www.francesfleet.com/">www.francesfleet.com</a>, the Seven B’s (with Capt. Andy Dangelo at the helm) at <a href="http://www.sevenbs.com/">www.sevenbs.com</a>, and the Island Current at <a href="http://www.islandcurrent.com/">www.islandcurrent.com</a> .<o:p></o:p></div>Captain Dave Montihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16831022398407972345noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1441293999360934440.post-61694493216526615432017-04-02T05:55:00.000-07:002017-04-02T05:55:10.797-07:00Budget cuts would harm fishing and fishing communities<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Budget cuts would harm fishing and fishing communities<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;">President Trump’s 2018 proposed budget cuts for climate change initiatives has the scientific community alarmed and will harm the fish and the fishing community here in Rhode Island. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><a href="http://www.vox.com/energy-and-environment/2017/3/16/14943826/trump-budget-proposal-climate-change">Brad Plumer on Vox.com</a> said: “What’s clear is that Trump wants the US government to pull back sharply from any effort to stop global warming, adapt to its impacts — or even study it further. That includes eliminating much of the work the Environmental Protection Agency is doing to research climate impacts and limit emissions.”<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;">“It includes scaling back the Department of Energy’s efforts to accelerate low-carbon energy. It also includes cuts to NASA’s Earth-monitoring programs. The proposal would also eliminate the Sea Grant program at NOAA, which helps coastal communities<b>&nbsp;</b>adapt to a warmer world.” said Plumer.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; tab-stops: 2.25in;">The President’s budget outline mainly offers top-line budget parameters for agencies with little detail. A detailed budget will be offered by the White House in May on how it would like to fund and/or cut programs.&nbsp; The Congress then votes on proposals approving or rejecting them.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; tab-stops: 2.25in;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">All of this is very concerning as fisheries management relies heavily on science and research for data collection, understanding the impact of climate change on fish and ecosystems and much more. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">In recent years we have had warm water fish such as black sea bass and summer flounder move up the east coast, and we have seen cold water fish such as cod and haddock leave the area. This type of fish movement is important to study and it directly related to climate change, changing ecosystems and warming water.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">Here are some budget cut highlights that impact the fish, fishing communities, ecosystem-based management and climate change work.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">First NOAA’s Sea Grant program, used by 33 states to provide grants to help coastal communities deal with the challenges of climate change, would be eliminated. This is not a budget reduction but a federal budget elimination.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">“Including Sea Grant, Trump’s budget would eliminate $250 million in NOAA programs for coastal management,” said Plumer. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">In Rhode Island, like many other states, the Sea Grant Program<span style="background: #F8FBFC; mso-bidi-font-family: &quot;Lucida Grande&quot;;">&nbsp;is a federal-state-university partnership.&nbsp; The program, which is based at the University of Rhode Island was one of the first Sea Grant Programs in the country formed by legislation sponsored by Senator Claiborne Pell.&nbsp; Rhode Island Sea Grant designs and supports research, outreach and education programs that foster coastal and marine stewardship. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="background: #F8FBFC; mso-bidi-font-family: &quot;Lucida Grande&quot;;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="background: #F8FBFC; mso-bidi-font-family: &quot;Lucida Grande&quot;;">For example, Rhode Island Sea Grant programs have helped to expand aquaculture in the state, mitigate beach erosion through use of offshore deposits, and address Rhode Island Marine Trades industry workforce skill gaps. Sea Grant studies have also explored the social impacts of ocean wind farms with the aim of encouraging ocean wind farm development on the east coast. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="background: #F8FBFC; mso-bidi-font-family: &quot;Lucida Grande&quot;;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="background: #F8FBFC; mso-bidi-font-family: &quot;Lucida Grande&quot;;">For the next two years, Rhode Island Sea Grant planned to </span><span style="background: white; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">improve understanding of shellfish (bivalve and gastropod) stock assessments and population dynamics with&nbsp;a focus on resource management implications.&nbsp; Additional plans called for studying the impacts of climate change on finfish and shellfish population dynamics in Rhode Island waters, with emphasis on Narragansett Bay species and fisheries.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="background: white; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="background: white; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">Last week Alex Kuffner of the </span><a href="http://www.providencejournal.com/news/20170314/trumps-proposed-cuts-to-noaa-budget-would-hit-ri-hard"><span style="background: white; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">Providence Journal reported</span></a><span style="background: white; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"> that in addition to Sea Grant, t</span><span style="color: #232323;">he Coastal Resources Management Council (CRMC) in Rhode Island would get a 60% budget cut from Trump.&nbsp;&nbsp; Kuffner said, “(CRMC) regulates all coastal development in the state, including homes, marinas and seawalls, and also collaborates on projects to restore habitats, such as the recent raising of a salt marsh along Ninigret Pond threatened by rising.”&nbsp; </span><span style="background: white; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="color: #232323;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="background: white; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">In addition to eliminating the Sea Grant program and much of the funds going to CRMC, Trump’s budget includes a 31 percent cut to the EPA’s budget, from $8.2 billion to</span> $5.7 billion.&nbsp; This includes zeroing out funds for many climate programs, including the agency’s work to monitor and reduce greenhouse gas emissions, as well as its Energy Star program, the voluntary program that helps companies produce energy efficient products.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">In the Department of Energy, Trump plans to impose a 17.9 percent cut, about $2 billion, from core energy and science programs intended to accelerate the transition to new (and cleaner) energy technologies. The Paris Agreement on climate change sets aside funding to help poor countries adapt to climate change and supports a host of other clean energy/climate change initiatives.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">As members of the fishing community, we need to help communicate these proposed cuts to others and share how they will impact the fish and fishing.&nbsp; We need research-based fisheries management programs that consider climate change and its impact on the fish and fish movement so we can grow fish populations to abundance. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 12.0pt; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;">The Trump-proposed cuts to NOAA and climate change programs will greatly harm the long-term health of fisheries and fishing communities. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 12.0pt; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b>Fly fishing the cinder worm hatch<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; tab-stops: 0in .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in; text-autospace: none;">The U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service, in partnership with RI Department of Environmental Management (DEM), announced its annual Cinder Worm Workshop.&nbsp; This is the program’s eighth year and it will include two weekday evening classes in fly tying instruction and one weekend evening of fly fishing. The program is free to registrants. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; tab-stops: 0in .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in; text-autospace: none;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">The course syllabus includes practical rigging and fly casting instruction for the novice on the day of fishing. .&nbsp; “We would like to have everyone attend both workshops,” said David Pollack, one of the organizers of the program, “but you also have the option to pick just one.”&nbsp; Introduction to practical rigging and casting instruction will be covered for those that need additional assistance.&nbsp; Fly fishers will then fish the coves of Grassy Point area of Ninigret National Wildlife Refuge.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; tab-stops: 0in .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in; text-autospace: none;">The program is open to any adult or accompanied child over the age of 10, regardless of skill level--40 person maximum so register early.&nbsp; Instruction and guidance will be provided by some of the area’s most proficient and knowledgeable worm fishermen.&nbsp;&nbsp; Also this year is the opportunity for kayak fishing - limited to experienced kayakers who have their own vessel. Proper safety equipment is required plus lights for navigation.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; tab-stops: 0in .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in; text-autospace: none;">&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; tab-stops: 0in .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in; text-autospace: none;">All fly tying materials will be provided.&nbsp; Participants are encouraged to bring their own tools and equipment, but all necessary fly tying tools and equipment will be loaned to registrants upon request. Saltwater fly fishing equipment will be loaned to registrants.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; tab-stops: 0in .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in; text-autospace: none;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; tab-stops: 0in .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in; text-autospace: none;">The Fly Tying classes will be held Tuesday, May 2<sup>rd</sup> and May 9th. 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at the <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; tab-stops: 0in .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in; text-autospace: none;">Kettle Pond Visitor Center, Charlestown, RI.&nbsp; The Fly Fishing portion of the program will take place Saturday, May 13th, 4:00 p.m. until dark at Ninigret National Wildlife Refuge, Charlestown, RI.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; tab-stops: 0in .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in; text-autospace: none;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; tab-stops: 0in .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in; text-autospace: none;">Capt. Ray Stachelek and Dave Pollack, fly fishing experts and USFWS volunteers will facilitate the program. For information or to register contact Scott Travers at <a href="mailto:sott.travers@dem.ri.gov"><span style="color: blue; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;; mso-fareast-font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;">sott.travers@dem.ri.gov</span></a> .<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; tab-stops: 0in .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in; text-autospace: none;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b>Narragansett Trout Unlimited to meet March 29<sup>th</sup><o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><sup><br /></sup></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">The Narragansett Chapter of Trout Unlimited (TU225) will host its monthly membership meeting on Wednesday, March 29th, 6:30 PM at the Coventry / West Greenwich Elks Lodge, 42 Nooseneck Hill Road (Rte. 3, Exit 6 off of Rte. 95), West Greenwich, R.I.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">The brief membership meeting will discuss the Chapter’s annual banquet and upcoming educational events, projects, and activities that the chapter will be involved in during the year. After the short meeting, the chapter will welcome Seth Boynick.&nbsp; Seth is the proprietor of The Farmington River Trading Company at <a href="http://www.farmingtonrivertradingcompany.com/"><span style="color: blue; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;">www.farmingtonrivertradingcompany.com</span></a> .&nbsp; The topic of his presentation will be “Drift Boat Fly Fishing on the Farmington and More!!”&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">For additional information contact chapter president Glenn Place at 1-401 225-7712 or&nbsp; <a href="mailto:TU225President@gmail.com"><span style="color: blue;">TU225President@gmail.com</span></a> .&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;"><b>DEM holds free fly-tying workshops <o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">The Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management (DEM) will hold a series of free fly-tying workshops that began this week at public libraries in Middletown, Little Compton and Portsmouth. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">The classes, designed for beginning and intermediate fly-tiers ages 10 and older, will cover techniques for both freshwater and saltwater fishing and will culminate in fishing events to be scheduled this spring. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">Scheduled events include: Freshwater Fly-tying at the Middletown Public Library, 700 West Main Road, Middletown on March 20, 27 &amp; April 3, 6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. and at the Portsmouth Free Public Library, 2658 East Main Road, Portsmouth, March 23, 30 &amp; April 6, 6:30 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.&nbsp; Saltwater Fly-tying will be held at the Brownell Library, 44 Commons, Little Compton, March 22, 29 &amp; April 5 , 6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></div><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">Classes are taught by experienced anglers from DEM’s Aquatic Resource Education program. All equipment and materials will be provided; however, participants are welcome to bring their own materials if desired. Space is limited and registration is required. To register, contact Scott Travers via email at <a href="mailto:Scott.travers@dem.ri.gov"><span style="color: blue; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;">Scott.travers@dem.ri.gov</span></a>.<b><span style="color: #1a2a37; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;; mso-fareast-font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"> <o:p></o:p></span></b></div>Captain Dave Montihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16831022398407972345noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1441293999360934440.post-2157402484020131792017-04-02T05:48:00.000-07:002017-04-02T05:48:28.848-07:00Fishing show bit success<div class="MsoNormal"><b><br /></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ET4kOnD0zm4/WODyaPNu0GI/AAAAAAAACCU/_Zkrw1x6yQkU_MW4qb7HnPnRQSqp8YKzQCLcB/s1600/Grainger%2Bfish%2B%25E2%2580%2593%2BPhoto%2BA.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="256" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ET4kOnD0zm4/WODyaPNu0GI/AAAAAAAACCU/_Zkrw1x6yQkU_MW4qb7HnPnRQSqp8YKzQCLcB/s320/Grainger%2Bfish%2B%25E2%2580%2593%2BPhoto%2BA.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><i><b>Grainger Pottery makes realistic ceramic fish</b>:&nbsp; Caroline and Lauren Grainger of Grainger Pottery, East Sandwich, MA delighted attendees at the New England Saltwater Fishing Show.&nbsp; Their ceramic fish are made to size, molded from real fish from our area.</i><o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><b>Fishing show bit success<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><b><br /></b></div><div class="MsoNormal">The New England Saltwater Fishing Show was a big success this weekend. Steve Medeiros, president of the Rhode Island Saltwater Anglers Association (<a href="http://www.risaa.org/">www.risaa.org</a>) said, “We had a line of 600 people waiting to get in Friday that stretched from the ticket office at the Convention Center all the way to the hotel.”&nbsp; And, on Sunday morning at 11:00 a.m. (an hour after the show started) the line I saw had about 400 people in it.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">Medeiros said, “We sold out booth space (over 300 exhibitors) a month before the show and we won’t know formal attendance numbers until we get a report from the Convention Center but it is sure to be record breaking.”&nbsp; More than 15,000 people have attended the show in the past.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal">Here are a few exhibits that caught my attention at the show.<b><o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">Matt Bosgraaf, manager of <b>The Kayak Centre of Rhode Island,</b> Wickford, RI said, “After taking a few years off we returned to the show and are glad we did.” Half way through the show on Saturday the Kayak Centre had already sold four boats. “And, you never know who is going to walk through the door in the next month or two and say ‘Hey we saw you at the Fishing Show and want to buy a Kayak’. That’s the way it works.” said Bosgraaf.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">Kayaks and paddle boards are one the fastest growing segments of boating with peddle kayaks being the craze and boats being tripped-out with fish finders, electric motors and much more.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">Sunday Kayak Centre owner Jeff Shapiro said, “To gain more awareness and walk in traffic the Kayak center plans to open at a new location this summer in the old Ryan’s Market on Brown Street in Wickford.”&nbsp; The Centre still plans to launch boats on Wickford Cove but the new location should generate additional exposure (they also have a summer location in Charlestown, RI).&nbsp; The Centre offers kayak lessons, paddle board and kayak boat rentals and sales with such brands as Feel Free, Old Town, Wilderness and Native Watercraft.&nbsp; They also sell gear and wear for kayakers including lines such as Patagonia and offer fishing seminars and events through their partner Ocean State Kayak Fishing.&nbsp; Visit the Kayak Center at <a href="http://www.kayakcentre.com/">www.kayakcentre.com</a> .&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><b>Grainer Pottery</b>of East Sandwich, MA creates hand-made ceramic fish.&nbsp; “We make over 100 different species of realistic ceramic fish, made to hang on the inside of a home as wall décor.&nbsp; Owners Caroline and Lauren Grainger said, “Our products have a lifelike feel because we make plaster molds from real fish and hand-press clay into the molds.&nbsp; We make realistic ceramic fish of all major New England species plus a variety of southern, tropical and freshwater fish.&nbsp; Visit <a href="http://www.graingerpotterysandwich.com/">www.graingerpotterysandwich.com</a><o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><b>Bill Hurley Lures</b>are custom made with lots of sand eel oil. “Traffic at the show has been great.&nbsp; I almost wish we sold the lures at the booth but we distribute them through bait &amp; tackle shops such as Goose Hummock Shop, Fisherman’s Line and Falmouth Bait &amp; Tackle who are at the show. The soft plastic lures are designed to mimic sand eels and are made with pure sand eel oil that is injected into the plastic and then the inside of the bag and lure are coated with sand eel oil when packaged.” Adults and children attending the show were mesmerized by Bill’s fish tank display of the lures working in the tank under simulated current conditions.&nbsp; The lures danced in the tank as water and pushed past them.&nbsp; The lure features Mustad jig hooks that are guaranteed not to fail when fishing for striped bass.&nbsp; Hurley Lures’ new lure called a Canal Deep Water swim bait is designed to mimic a herring, Atlantic menhaden and/or a sand eel.&nbsp; It will soon be available in 6, 5 or 3.6 once sizes.&nbsp; Visit <a href="http://www.codandstriperlures.com/">www.codandstriperlures.com</a> . <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><b>Cheeky</b> makes both fly fishing and spinning reels in bright green and blue colors.&nbsp; This Arlington, MA Company has been designing and building reels for six years and were one of the first manufactures to use bright colors to construct reels.&nbsp; Ted Upton, CEO of Cheeky said, “Our multi-disc drag system is one of the most distinguishing features of our spinning reels. Our SaltForce aluminum frame and body and machined carbon spin spool keeps the reels strong and light weight.”&nbsp; The CYDRO line was on sale at the show for $100 (normally $129).&nbsp; It is available in 3500, 4500 and 5500 model sizes all at the same price.&nbsp; Upton said, “We are happy at how the reels did at the show and what was surprising was that we had just as much interest in our fly fishing reels as we had with our spinning reels.”&nbsp; Visit <a href="http://www.cheekyfishing.com/">www.cheekyfishing.com</a>.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><b>Harbor Light Software</b>cofounder Fran Karp said, “Knowledge is power and having good, accurate, real-time data collecting of fishing data for fisheries management is what Harbor Light Software delivers to fishermen and fish mangers.&nbsp; This show allows us to share with recreational anglers the software we have developed and are implementing on the east coast for the commercial and for-hire charter boat industry.&nbsp; Many of these same initiatives could be adopted to work for recreational fishing.”&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">The advantage of collecting accurate data is that fishery biomass, catch and effort are more accurately estimated.&nbsp; If we have better data fisheries are managed more effectively so we can grow them to abundance so there are more fish for all to catch. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">The company’s FishNET software is its first application to collect real time catch, effort and biological data electronically.&nbsp; Today the software is accepted by NOAA in select areas as the software of choice to speak directly to the ACCSP data warehouse offering commercial fisherman and charter boats the opportunity to file their Vessel Trip Reports (VTRs) electronically saving hours of paperwork and providing fish mangers with more accurate data.&nbsp; Visit <a href="http://www.harborlightsoftware.com/">www.harborlightsoftware.com</a> .<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><br /><div class="MsoNormal">Dave Morton of <b>Beavertail Rod &amp; Reel</b> said, “We are now getting into repairing kayak peddle systems too.”&nbsp; The North Kingstown company does reel cleaning as well as rod and reel repair.&nbsp; They take apart reels, clean all pierces and then reassemble the reels.&nbsp; Morton said, “We can modify and customize reels for anglers of all types including people with disabilities enabling them to fish or fish more effectively.”&nbsp; The company replaces guides and tips on reels too and can be found at <a href="http://www.beavertailrodandreel.com/">www.beavertailrodandreel.com</a>.<o:p></o:p></div>Captain Dave Montihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16831022398407972345noreply@blogger.com0